


Your Love,   My Moonshine

by ink_stained_hands



Category: EXO
Genre: Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Celtic Mythology & Folklore, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Lunar deity, M/M, My First AO3 Post, My First Work in This Fandom, Pixies, Possible Character Death, Romance, Wolf Pack, wolf falls for the moon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-27
Updated: 2018-09-02
Packaged: 2019-07-03 06:04:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 29,382
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15812952
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ink_stained_hands/pseuds/ink_stained_hands
Summary: " The wolves are silent. It is the moon that howls." Kyungsoo looked at the half moon longingly, then continued on his journey in search of his mate. He was anxious, because his mate wasn't going to simply rain from the skies now. Would they?





	1. Prologue :         The Birch Moon

**Prologue: The Birch Moon**

_ The year begins, _

_ With a new chance at life _

_ The wounds heal, _

_ And new doors open up. _

#    
  


A stiff tension surrounded the clearing where the pack meetings were usually held, now occupied by only few people. It was clear that there was a divide and the two parties arguing in the clearing had no intentions of backing down. The arguments were pouring forth like cannons on two sides of a battlefield. This was no less of a battlefield, what with the pride of two alphas on the line.

“I think, I’ve made it clear that I am  _ not  _ mating the omega…..He isn’t my mate…” A clench in the jaw. “-Father.” Kyungsoo says, reigning back the intense emotions surging through him.

The older Alpha stands tall before him, flanked by the rest of the pack. Given the situation, it was only natural that they side with Kyungsoo’s father. With a cynical smirk, Kyungsoo notices how he is standing alone, fighting a losing battle against his own father.

His own father, who is looking at him through eyes filled with ruthless determination and authority. A gaze Kyungsoo had seen many a times from childhood, usually directed at pack members he wants to see yield before him. Kyungsoo’s resolve wavers, just slightly, but this was regarding  _ his _ life. He is an Alpha too, so submit he won’t. Not without a fight.

“ I haven’t raised you to be ridiculous, Kyungsoo.” The older Alpha says, and Kyungsoo detects the disappointment in his voice. ‘’I expected you to be more mature about this. Is this even a matter that should be discussed?’’

Kyungsoo exhales loudly before replying. “I do not intend to force some poor Omega into a bond that will have no feelings!” His voice steadily rose. His father’s scowl only deepened, before he nods.

Kyungsoo only has time to let the sound of footsteps approaching him from behind register, before he is entrapped from head to toe by thick ropes, making him succumb down onto his knees due to the bulk of his detainers. He struggles but feels the ropes tighten around him in response. 

‘’Father!’’ he growls at the older man who is now standing right before him, watching his son struggling at his feet, with a calmness that only furthers Kyungsoo’s anger

“Do not raise your voice at me, son.” He says quietly, the authority in his tone assertive enough to make the pack shudder at its sheer dominance. But, Kyungsoo ignores the Alpha as he struggles viciously against the human binds.

“I have promised Alpha Jung that you will marry his son by the next Birch Moon.’’ Alpha Do continues, tutting in distaste at the sight of his stubborn son, still trying to free himself from the bonds.

‘’I am not heartless. I will give you an year to find a mate of your choice, or the pack is going to be handed over to any competent Alpha who wins in the duel against you.” Alpha Do says, the mere thought of that making his mood sour further.

“But father-” 

Alpha Do raised his hand, looking away and the binds tightened even further, finally sucking the fight out of Kyungsoo who slumps onto his knees panting.

“I am not letting you make any mistakes here. This is the most I can stall before potential Alpha’s start sniffing your position with their fangs bared.”

His father walked away to the side with a stern countenance. “My decision is final and the word of law.” He turns his back to Kyungsoo, walking away, before stopping yet again. He turns his head slightly towards Kyungsoo’s direction,then nods up at the men who were keeping Kyungsoo subdued. At his command, the ropes binding his body fall away and the young Alpha feels a semblance of lightness.

“Father-” Kyungsoo calls out weakly.

“You may leave now. This discussion is over.” Kyungsoo hears his father’s voice, but doesn’t look up as he shakily wills himself onto his feet, dusts off his clothes and makes to leave when the quiet voice of his father stopped him.

“Seungsoo has already refused to take over the pack. It cannot happen again.” His father was obviously referring to his rebellion on the topic of mating. “Consider this as your final warning, threat or request because I am certainly not wasting a capable leader like you.”

Kyungsoo’s eyes lowered in defeat. Yielding before the Head Alpha. He had lost this battle. “I understand.” he says quietly

“I pray to the Lunar deity for their blessings to be bestowed upon you, so you return with a mate.” Alpha Do says, his tone much kinder now that his son was playing by his rules.

The moon deity was the ultimate deity for werewolves anywhere throughout the world. The wolves believed that the deity watched over them and helped them liberate their inner beasts once a month at the night of the full moon. In a sense, the deity took care of their needs and for that the wolves will always feel gratitude towards the moon.

Kyungsoo nodded solemnly.

His father was looking over at his shoulder with a terse silence. “Avoid the Cathair Aine during your journey, I want you to return safe … and  _ sane _ ”

At this, Kyungsoo can’t help the scoff that makes it past his lips. “You certainly can’t expect me to believe some  _ folklore _ father.”

“It shines in the dark…” His Father scowled, and Kyungsoo can see his fists clenching. “ It shines like the moon…... -You will know it when you see it.” 

Kyungsoo gaped at the obvious ignorance. He had high regards and respect for his father,for the Alpha was a rational and wise man. To think he believed a folklore was therefore rather off putting.

“It’s the Fool’s Moon. Do not be fooled or the Aine of Knockaine won’t be very forgiving.” With that his father walked away regally, leaving him with many questions unanswered.

Cathair Aine. An infamous stone among the werewolves. A large rock in fact, which was said to drive you insane if you sat on it once, and lose your sanity forever if you sat on it thrice. Kyungsoo had heard many stories of men sitting on it to rest when journeying, only to fall to its deadly clutches of madness. 

Aine of Knockaine. The Goddess who watched over the Cathair Aine, who did not appreciate mortals trying to touch her stone. She was also notoriously vengeful.

Kyungsoo was certain it was mindless folklore passed down by word of mouth throughout the pack for generations, and no stone would be actually capable of damaging his sanity. There was nothing to testify that. A  _ stone _ ……..right. He scoffed at the thought of a mere stone turning him insane.

#    
  
  
  
  


The next evening comes sooner than expected. Throughout the day, Kyungsoo could sense the tense atmosphere around him. Even the pack was on edge since the question of whether Kyungsoo was going to be their next Alpha or not was resting on a razor blade.

It was time.

He was ready for the unknown journey. The sun was setting quickly in the skies painted with light hues of orange and pinks, casting rays of gentle warmth over the surroundings, bathing everything in a comforting golden glow. The pack had come to see him off and wish him luck in his quest. He smiles at them all, though he didn’t feel like smiling, yet these were the people he had grown up with. It was rather nostalgic to leave it all behind now, and Kyungsoo’s smile falters.

His father only casts a grim smile at him, and his words from the night before ring clear in Kyungsoo’s head, but he pushes them to the furthest corner of his mind.

After a simple farewell, he sets off.

He had only packed some basic necessities to take with him. He ventures deeper into the forest, away from his packmates, away from his home to some destination unknown.

A smile grew on his face looking up at the darkening sky. It was the night of the waxing crescent moon. Soon his smile grew tranquil as the night breeze caressed his face with gentle touches. He closes his eyes and tilts his head higher, feeling comforted as a strange sense of confidence washes over him. 

The moon seemed to smile down at him gently. Looking at the moon always made him feel calm and peaceful. A soothing balm to his weary mind. But today it made him feel hopeful for the journey ahead. He felt strangely giddy and liberated.

Leaved crunched under his footfalls, but never did his sight stray from the sight of the moon. So beautiful and mesmerising.

He prayed to the Lunar deity again and continued up ahead. Soon he was whistling a praise for the deity in the sky, his voice merging harmonically with the cool breeze.

 

* * *

 

 

 


	2. Waxing Crescent

Kyungsoo walks and walks, only stopping at a river to freshen up and rest a while. He wanted to cover as much ground as possible before stopping for the night to get some sleep. But the question was, will this endless walking result into something? Something useful?

 

He wanders aimlessly, unsure of his where to go. Perhaps he was in transition zone of the forest. A land between two territories….. He sighed helplessly.

 

His priorities and decisions seemed to be failing him because where was he going? How will he find his mate? He angrily messed up his hair having a small urge to tear it up.

 

“Tsk Tsk.” A voice infiltrated the quietness of the forest. He shook it off thinking it was an insect when it came again. Much sharper and clearer this time, leaving no doubts. Certain pixies had taken an interest in him.

 

“Tsk Tsk.” It was different from before but he was sure someone was following him and…...mocking him? Hell! He knew it was his headstrong decision but the whole world needn’t come out right now to disparage his ideologies and paths he chose for himself.

 

Looking around he found nothing till he heard a clear voice.

 

“Behold! What do we have here?” A voice sang mockingly.

“A werewolf with paths unclear.” Another voice joined in and he was sure it was these voices tsking at him. Pixies were the last thing he needed at the trough of his life. It was apparent that the mischievous fairies were here to get a kick out of his pitiful state.

 

But he was baffled because he still couldn’t locate the source of the sound despite the clarity. Also they were grating on his nerves.

 

“The big bad wolf is looking for us..”  A giggle.

“Sharp senses and yet so much fuss?” More giggles and finally two tiny creatures made a show of revealing themselves. How the hell did he manage to get two annoying pixies on his tail? Not one but two…… Troubles come in a pair of course.

 

“So Mr.Wolf? Where are you headed to? Need our help?” one of them chirped. “Oh by the way, I am Baekhyun.” The question irritated Kyungsoo.

 

“To find a mate..” he replied stiffly. That’s it. He had nothing much to say about the matter.

 

“So don’t you need our help mister?” the one with kittenish features reminded him. He seemed a little less annoying from his friend. But the fact still remained that he wanted to be alone for a while.

 

“And you are..?” He questioned gruffly not wanting to reply to their questions, he himself had no clue about. He wondered if it was easy to fool pixies. He hadn’t encountered them much so he was really unsure about the extent of their wits.

 

“I am Chen!” he bounced in the air happily.

 

Kyungsoo nodded at both of them.

“Thank you Chen and Baekhyun-” Both of them looked at him with a sparkly demeanor. “But I will figure it out on my own.” Not wanting to be the subject of their interrogation again, he started walking again. He tried to ignore how their faces fell like the dimming of sunlight on a cloudy day. They seemed to be nice but he couldn’t really trust them.

 

These annoying pixies weren’t having it. They caught up to his strides real quick.

 

“Rude mister wolf is rude.” The pixie called Baekhyun pouted at him. Another ploy of sorts, to which Kyungsoo decided not to reply.

 

“So now you ignore us too?” Chen sounded offended. Were annoying creatures supposed to get offended this quick? “Fine let’s go Baek. Kindness isn’t accepted here.” Chen sighed grumpily pulling the other pixie with him to leave. Kyungsoo breathed through his nose but he was relieved that they were leaving instead if chirping annoyingly by his sensitive ears.

 

No matter how hard he tried, these questions still followed him. The ones he rather not answer right now. How could he? He didn't know them. The answers…...He didn’t know the answers right now. Maybe a day in future. He hoped.

 

On a reflex, he looked up at the sky again. The waxing moon calmed the resurgence of disparity that came bubbling forth, threatening to regurgitate. He appreciated the superficial calmness that blanketed him. He needed it to hide his insecurities.

 

It was almost midnight and he was too weary to continue. He looked for a good spot to sleep and also to look at the beloved moon till he fell asleep. It made no absolute sense but he didn’t feel lonely with the deity watching over him.

 

“So precise and so pristine,

A beauty calm and clear…...”

 

He hummed the lines under his breath with the gentle winds providing the soothing instrumentals, accompanying his smooth voice. With the image of a bright mass of stone burned into his senses, he fell asleep.

  
  
  
  


He kept on journeying in and out of the forests of trees. His edgy behaviour making him determined to find some settlement of wolves where he could stay for a while.

 

And it wasn’t long till he could smell the scent of a large settlement nearby. Finally!

 

A small smile grew on his face making room for some hope to get him through this. His mate might be here, might not be here but he would never know, unless he checked.

  
  


It seemed to be a decent sized pack but he had to come off as a harmless passerby or the hostility of Alphas here would surely get him kicked out before he could step a foot into their territory. A traveller Alpha was always looked upon suspiciously.

 

He waited for one of the patrolling Alphas to find him. It was better than to seem dangerous by evading their territorial bounds. He was sniffed out real quick.

 

‘What do you want Alpha?’ a large grey coloured wolf questioned him, his form tense and alert for smallest move Kyungsoo made. He was expecting a brutal confrontation that headless Alphas pounce upon the minute they see a foreign Alpha. But this one seemed to have a head after all. Saves him a lot of work then.

 

“A place to stay!” he yelled across. But the wolf was still tense, clouds of conflict overshadowing his features. ‘Stay here then! I will come and get you…’  

 

The wolf later emerged as a human aided by some Betas. He jogged across to where Kyungsoo was patiently waiting.

 

“How do we trust you? That you are not here to terrorise our Omegas? A Beta questioned him his tone harsh and voice and rough. Not bothering to hide the malign in his intentions.

 

“I am just an Alpha on a journey. Terrorising your Omegas will surely grant me nothing other than being kicked out ruthlessly and denied a place to stay” Kyungsoo answered with a practiced smile on his face, his features smoothened out from the harsh lines of worry and tension. He was aware that the Alpha was silently observing him. But the rude Beta was still scowling. Finding more reasons to be suspicious of him.

 

“Hi! I am Minseok. Welcome to our pack. The pack’s name is Dark Phoenix. And you?” The man smiled but he was completely unreadable to Kyungsoo. He seemed like a very closed off man.

 

“I am Kyungsoo from the-” he contemplated lying about his identity because as much as these wolves eyed him with distrust, he was no naíve sheep either, willing to tell his life story to these men. The feeling of distrust was mutual. But then his eyes fell on the Alpha calmly seizing him with his cat-like eyes, he felt a shudder run down his spine. He got the message that lying wouldn’t hold good with this pack.

 

He cleared his throat awkwardly, in hopes of dispelling the weird silence he created. “I am Do Kyungsoo of the Dragon Warrior pack.”

 

If Minseok recognized the pack name his face gave nothing away. It was impeccably unreadable as ever.

 

“You are looking for a place to stay?” he gestured his other pack members to go back to their patrols. Kyungsoo didn’t miss the small growl the scowling Beta sent his way. He tried to focus on Minseok as they started walking.

 

“Ah yes I am……” Kyungsoo was not sure how to proceed without giving away too much.

 

Minseok, however was not deterred.“Any place you are headed to?” His visage matched his words but Kyungsoo still found them discordant. “Nothing in particular……... I am just a traveller.” Kyungsoo flashed a tight lipped smile at the bulky man walking with him.

 

“Are you looking for something?” Minseok questioned him casually as if he was expecting the vague answer Kyungsoo was about to give.

 

Kyungsoo mirthlessly chuckled. “Maybe.” he grinned to himself as if he knew a secret.

 

His grin vanished when the next moment an arrow almost pricked his ear. His wide eyes frantically searched for the culprit.

 

Minseok merely smirked at his look of alarm.

 

“He is with me Sunhwa!” Minseok yelled to the seemingly empty woods.

 

Kyungsoo flinched at the authoritative tone that suddenly came from the pretty man beside him. But then again he was an Alpha.

 

A slender figure emerged from the darker side of the woods, appearing unfazed. “I was just practicing Minseok!” Kyungsoo was sure that the girl (he assumed) was an Omega. But he was more surprised that she was addressing the patrol leader by his first name.

 

Minseok haughtily threw out a ‘Sure’ chuckling to himself and proceeding on.

 

But Kyungsoo was sure it was far from a simple practice and the arrow was intended for him but when Minseok refused to enlighten him about the mysterious archer, Kyungsoo did not prod him any further.

 

First that Beta and now the archer Omega. Everyone somewhat wanted his head. A great start indeed.

 

They kept walking with Minseok “casually” interviewing him here and there.They stopped abruptly and Kyungsoo was glad to reach the unknown destination. Minseok gestured him to stay as he proceeded into the small house. It was then Kyungsoo took notice of his surroundings.

 

He realised with a shudder of surprise that they were in the main pack area judging by the bustling community settled around this small yet important-looking house.

 

It had to be the village Elder, Kyungsoo mused taking in the details of the house. But Kyungsoo found it odd that the house was fairly small sized compared to his own. And if Minseok went to discuss it with the Elder about him, it was most probably the Head Elder’s house he was gawking at.

 

The Alpha soon emerged from the house gesturing him to go in.

 

He took a deep breath and entered the house.

 

He walked by the hallways trying to spot a soul that he was supposed to talk to. He peeked by the open rooms, finally stumbling upon the one with an old man in it.

 

Kyungsoo sent small prayer to the moon above before entering the threshold.

 

The man sat before a wooden desk with his knees folded underneath him. His posture alone screamed authority. He might have been a victim of time like the rest of the mortals on this planet but nothing regarding him indicated any fragility that was said to characterise the people of his age, infiltrating and breaking them apart cell by cell. If anything, he would hold off well in a duel against Kyungsoo himself. 

 

Those wrinkles on his face was mere indication of passage of time, a proof that this man indeed had his fair share of experiences yet his strong persona made it clear that he wasn't meant to be taken lightly. Well, he was the Elder Alpha after all. Ofcourse he wasn't meant to be taken lightly. But knowing that fact and experiencing it were two different things, Kyungsoo realised.

 

He hesitantly sat down, mirroring the old man’s pose.

 

“Minseok told me about you, traveller. Tell me boy, is that what you seek?” his grey eyes pierced Kyungsoo’s form with an unwithering gaze.

 

Kyungsoo again contemplated going with the flow and avoid the truth. But his instinct told him that the old man in front of him was well aware that it was not solely about travelling. He settled for a truthful approach.

 

“I am looking for a mate and this journey is my last hope.” Kyungsoo muttered with his eyes downcast, unable to face the regal old man. There might be graying hair and lines of experience on his face but none of it managed to deter his aura that reeked of authority.

 

Kyungsoo was not sure what response to expect as he unknowingly balled his fists. His head shot up when the final verdict came sooner than he expected.

 

“You may stay, boy. But you better stay out of trouble too.”

 

The words tumbled out before he could process them. “That’s it?” his wide eyes describing the shock he felt. Something about the expression that the Elder wore hinted that it was indeed something else layering that statement but he refused to elaborate it altogether 

 

“Minseok will guide you to your hut.” And the old man gestured him to leave. As soon he stepped out he probably heard a tired sigh from the same room. All Alphas were same. Kyungsoo couldn’t help but smile grimly.

  
  


Kyungsoo walked out to Minseok in a daze of trying to figure out what did that old man see in him to let him stay based on such a short interview. Going by how the pack was, he expected more probing questions.

  
  


Kyungsoo wondered about a lot of things as he tried to sleep in his hut but that archer that tried to kill him held the most prominence in his thoughts. He was sure he will cross paths with them again. He fell asleep to the sight of serene night by the window, a sight that close to his heart and mind.

  
  


Kyungsoo must have really been tired because it was rare that someone had to wake him up. He was perfectly capable of waking up early all by himself but his own actions shocked him when he whined to Minseok to let him sleep longer and grumpily covered his face with the blanket.

  
  


“Kyungsoo….we are meeting the alphas today. I don’t think this is something you should miss. But the rest is--” Minseok watched in pure amusement as Kyungsoo threw his blanket away and zombie-walked to the bathroom, making sure to throw a disdainful glare at him.

  
  


“I will introduce you to all the Alphas in this village so they do not snap your neck as soon as they get a whiff of your scent.” Kyungsoo just nodded not looking enthused in the least bit. Minseok was still staring at him in amusement. A slight crease appeared on Kyungsoo’s forehead.

 

“What?”

 

“Nothing.” The other Alpha said haughtily. Kyungsoo just rolled his eyes and sighed apprehensively.

  
  


They were passing by the same forest through which he had entered the village. Kyungsoo might not be in a mood for the meeting but all his senses were fully alert because meeting Alphas of a foreign pack might be necessary but that did not mean he would make it out unharmed so when another arrow was shot at him he swiftly dodged it and caught it with his fast reflexes.

 

“Are you still gonna tell me that this was a practice shot?” Kyungsoo asked Minseok showing him the arrow supposedly intended for him. Minseok pursued his lips before looking at his feet.

 

“Sunhwa!” he used the authoritative tone again.

 

This time Kyungsoo was sure where the lithe figure emerged from which he was sure was ‘Sunhwa’

 

“Yes Alpha!”

 

“Stop making a target out of our guest” Minseok calmly but sternly. Kyungsoo felt relieved at the support. He regarded the archer with gleeful eyes.

 

“Sorry Alpha but nothing better than moving targets.” The Omega yelled with a delicate shrug of shoulders. And that statement effectively managed to drain all of smug particles in his body. Was this girl for real?

 

“I cannot deny that I suppose but please don’t shoot our guest.” Kyungsoo cast his disbelieving wide eyes at Minseok next. “Bu-but-” Kyungsoo stammered in utter shock as Minseok waved the Omega girl away. “We must make haste Kyungsoo.” The said Alpha simply gaped briefly wondering if this pack was weird and they had some weird ritualistic sacrifices and he was unknowing lucky candidate. Why was Minseok so nonchalant about this…….

  
  
  


Meeting the Alphas drained whatever small amount of energy he had managed to accumulate. He wasn’t sure why he felt so lightheaded recently. He hoped it was because of change of location. And that over confident Omega archer bothered him more than she should to be honest because in this foreign land of unknown wolves he had to maintain his cool. He couldn’t afford to pick fights here.

 

But something within him itched to have a talk with the archer. The itch made it impossible for him to stay still so he decided to head out for a walk. He hadn’t even strayed far from the main settlement and he caught another arrow swishing past him.

 

He did not have to think before he broke out in a run to chase after the scent of the archer.

 

With a jolt he realised that the archer wasn’t still either. The intensity of the scent kept changing depending upon how close he got or how farther she managed to run. She smelled like fresh strawberries. Not his favorite scent but it wasn’t off-putting either.

 

“Omega!” He yelled hopelessly. Using titles was formal way of talking to strangers. It wasn’t meant to be disrespectful or downgrading.

 

He got another surprise when the source of the scent stopped abruptly. He jogged up to where she stood

 

“What do you want Alpha?” the voice spoke tiredly.

 

“I want nothing from you if you can just explain as to why do you want to kill me with these.’ He pointed at the quiver of arrows strapped to her back.  

 

She scoffed before answering “I don’t have any reason to trust a foreign Alpha just because the Village Elder does. I am merely doing my duties and being wary of you is all.” He really couldn’t believe this girl but at the same time he did. He wasn’t very trusting either.

 

“Are you a hunter?”

 

She had to be one. Her skills were nearly perfect. But she didn’t need the security of these weapons when her wolf could hunt better than any trained human. Wolves were natural predators and more precise than any weapon to ever exist.

 

“Does it bother you?” She threw another question at him in response to his question.

 

“I don’t really know if it bothers me or not but does it not bother your Wolf? Nothing better than to hunt as wolves.” A small smirk grew on his face. “Or your wolf isn’t agile enough to hunt?”

 

She replied in a cool voice, “Don’t poke your nose where it doesn’t belong. And it certainly doesn’t belong in this pack-” She looked at him dead in the eye. “Especially not in my matters.” Kyungsoo was impressed by her confidence but he wasn’t going to show it. He raised his palms up in mock surrender.

 

“I look forward to the day you will successfully shoot me then.” he gestured to her arrows. “With these”

 

She scoffed, “ It’s too early to be this conceited but-” she gave him a once over. “Whatever.” she rolled her eyes and darted off in a random direction. Kyungsoo smiled and shook his head at her behaviour.

  
  
  


That same night a hunt was organised by the Alphas and Betas of the pack. Omegas could join but mostly they preferred not to unless they had an urge to run. And some of them stayed back to guard their pack land so their percentage participating in hunts was much lesser comparatively.

 

He had obtained permission from Minseok to join in on the hunt. He really missed the thrill of chasing and catching the prey as he did with his packmates back home as the leader of the hunters

 

He was almost sure that the pack wouldn’t let him join. But he had to fulfill their conditions to be able to join in and that was that he was to stay with Alphas when running and he would be asked to return if he tried to join with Betas and Omegas. He was also not to run off with any of the pack members alone into the forest or he would be barred from any of the hunts in the future.

 

He supposed that the conditions were just and fair. Nothing too demanding in his opinion unless he had weird ulterior motives which he did not. And his motive was already well known around this pack. He wouldn’t be surprised if it made it to the neighbouring pack as well.Word about the mysterious new Alpha spreads quicker than any plague known to man.

 

He surveyed the group gathered for the Hunt. But his eyes stayed a beat longer when he spotted the same Omega that had tried to shoot him. She smirked at him and that’s when he came to senses that he should stop staring. He was quick to snap his head away but he failed to hide the telltale sign of being flustered as he fidgeted on his paws uneasily. He closed his eyes in silent mortification. He was sure that he would definitely find a mate like this.sarcasm intended.

 

But he couldn’t help it since that Omega baffled him completely with her bow and arrows. He was almost sure that she couldn’t hunt in her wolf form

 

At Minseok’s familiar snout raising up to howl at the moon, their Hunt finally began.

 

Today the full moon seemed to be unusually bright.

 

Compared to how he ran as leader in the past; free and unrestrained, this time he made sure to keep a close distance with the current leader. He had to constantly remind himself that he wasn’t free to run off on his own.  

 

But that did not mean he could not explore the forest at all. Minseok had told him to stay close enough for him to be able to smell Kyungsoo and vice versa otherwise he had the allowance to stray a bit and look for more prey. He strangely felt as if Minseok trusted him but he also did not. One thing was sure. Minseok knew more than he let on and he was constantly observing him.

  
  


This Hunt really felt like a test of sorts. There really had to be a catch somewhere in these turn of events. His trust itself was a test, Kyungsoo concluded.

 

He ran at the speed of his thoughts. Trying to release some extra pent up energy before he could really focus on hunting. He sniffed a little to check if he could still smell Minseok before proceeding on.

 

Kyungsoo looked around in wonderment because he was sure that he had never visited this area before. It looked slightly different from the rest of the forest. A bit too lively for nighttime but he wasn’t complaining. The area literally glowed under the light of moon as if the moonlight fuelled the night blooming flowers he spotted scattered around the area. And by their scent he could tell they weren’t like anything he had smelled before.

  
  


He heard familiar hum coming from somewhere close to this place. He froze when he realized that there was another person in this clearing with him. His limbs stiffened up in a tense posture, ears standing up in complete alert.

 

He tried to silently approach whoever this person was. When he made it to the edge of the clearing, he vaguely saw a figure dressed in all white, sitting on a rock sullenly. He tried to go closer but Minseok’s scent was growing fainter with each step. And then his paw retreated having frozen up mid air.

 

Staying rooted to his current hiding spot, he observed the person who was humming a random tune in his glowy white robes. The sight had him entranced but he whined lowly when he couldn’t go closer to investigate. His whine must have been audible because the figure whipped around. The humming stopped, the spell broke and Kyungsoo dashed away before that mysterious person could locate him.

 

He shook his head to clear it and focus on his Hunt. The growing intensity of Minseok’s scent strangely comforted him.

 

From then it was nothing new for him to catch a deer. But his mind was full of strange events from earlier and he wasn’t even doing his best to catch a prey. All those years of Hunting did come in handy for once. For he had to return with something for the sake of his pride as an Alpha.

 

 

The dinner with the whole pack went smoothly albeit he was flustered once again when he noticed that Sunhwa had caught a deer too. He too knew he could do better than this but his mind wasn’t cooperating much today.

 

He quietly nibbled on his share of meat when the Omega boldly approached him and sat beside him. It didn’t go unnoticed by the other packmates because he felt their eyes trying to drill a hole in him. Many were still wary of him so he was alone for most part. And he didn’t mind because social interactions weren’t his idea of fun either. He was perfectly fine being alone

 

“What was your position in your pack?” She asked with her mouthful of food. She really ate like a kid, he noted, possessing none of the elegance Omegas usually possess to seem more desirable. But then again he would take this over any of the pretentious shit some of the Omegas did.

 

He swallowed his food before replying, “A Hunter.” He felt the need to say more but he wasn’t sure how to keep this going. The Omega noticed none of his inner turmoil.

 

She guffawed as soon she heard his answer. “Are you sure Alpha?” She turned her head away, her body shaking with silent tremors of laughter. “Your catch does not indicate so”.

 

“Or is your wolf not agile enough to hunt today…..Alpha?.” she added the last part to lessen the blow.

 

And before he could even respond the Omega had moved on to her group of friends. Kyungsoo’s pride should have suffered some great bruises by now but he couldn’t bring himself to be mad at her words. He rather found the whole ordeal more interesting than off-putting.

This made him even more curious about this Omega called Sunhwa. She was definitely an interesting personality because not every Omega has guts to take digs at a stranger Alpha in middle of the whole pack.

 

He smiled to himself at the prospect of knowing this Omega some more.

  
  
  


But at night when he went to sleep, it wasn’t the Omega occupying his thoughts, it was the mysterious figure in the woods. The purity of light of the full moon today reminded him of the glowing robes he had seen. Now that he thought of it, he found it strange to see a person in the middle of nowhere with the moon high up in the sky. It was mostly the time for wolves to Hunt so everybody steered clear. And not to mention that strange clearing he had come across.

 

In his ten years of being a hunter wolf, he had never seen a clearing like that. Neither of those scents seemed familiar to him. His tired brain computed it as unique nature phenomenon so he could finally fall asleep.

  
  


The impact of that incident did lessen over the course of next few days with the lessening intensity of the moonlight. But his praises still remained faithful to the Lunar deity. He prayed for a mate everyday and he had this growing feeling that his prayers might have been answered finally.

 

Sometimes he wandered aimlessly in the forest looking for that clearing. But he never even got close. Sometimes he sneaked out at night hoping to find it since he has stumbled upon it at night but there was no luck in that case whatsoever.

 

 

* * *

 

 

  
  


**_The Rowan Moon_ **

**_A small seed of hope,_ **

**_Under the nurture of resolve._ **

**_Shall survive steepest of slopes_ **

**_So that the dream never dissolves._ **

 

The onset of new month brought along an onslaught of activities in the village. Everyone seemed to be in high spirits for the Fire Festival called Imbolc. Spring was around the corner and this festival welcomed the Spring with great enthusiasm. Each pack had different ways to celebrate Imbolc but they all celebrated it in the name of Goddess Brigid who was believed to be looking after their hearth and homes. Especially their hearth fires.

  
  


His memories about this festival were a bit blurry because as a child he mostly spent it running around with other children and rest of it was spent carrying out his Father’s responsibilities for the setup of this festival. What he used to enjoy as a kid was merely reduced to a chore in his adolescent years.

 

So his current actions were a cumulative of all these years as he felt like it was his moral responsibility to help around in the village.

 

His sudden entrance in the bustling scene had certainly aroused a lot of curious glances from people but he wasn’t entirely unwanted either, after all who doesn’t appreciate help when the preparations never seemed to end.

 

Whenever he would leave, he would wistfully eye the candle-lit homes of the village and reminisce the celebrations back home. He wasn’t the type to feel homesick usually but it was hard not to feel homesick amidst the roar of the celebrations and energetic aura of festivities.

 

The warm glow that enshrouded the village left behind a gentle burn of nostalgia in the walls of his heart. It captivated his eyes, the way the village radiated sudden warmth and energy like Spring itself but still a shadow to the image in his memories.

 

Recalling might have gone too far when he found himself cleaning his place on his own accord, a task that he always avoided back home. But lighting candles in a shabby place didn’t sit well with him either because it simply wasn’t done anywhere.

 

He set out on another of his evening walks to ogle the beauty of this village, and silently draw comparisons between this village and his, when he stumbled upon Sunhwa again. And that too not without her archery gear. He shouldn’t really be surprised.

 

“Slacking off again?”

 

Kyungsoo smiled in response. “I don’t know about myself but you surely are.” And that definitely set of a trigger in 3...2..1-- “Excuse me?” her narrowed eyes screaming subtle incredulity.

 

He jutted his chin in the direction of her hunting gear. “This itself is a mockery to the community of hunter wolves.” He noticed the shift in her eyebrows to a deeper frown but he still continued, “Shame, isn’t it?” Turning to look back at her with counterfeit pity he shook his head.

 

“What is?” She snapped like he had expected her to.

 

He smiled serenely at her, then turned away to face the darkening sky, “If only you could put the same efforts in hunting as a wolf, you would have excelled Minseok by now. It’s in our nature to be natural predators.”

 

The chuckle he got in response was pretty unexpected, “Then what do you suggest, hunter wolf?” was she really giving in so easily? It was his turn to frown. “You Alpha wolves are all same,” she tsked to herself, “putting hunting on the highest pedestal.”

                                                                                                  

He ignored that last comment. It annoyed him for some reason.

 

He looked at her dead in the eye before speaking, “Practice hunting…” he said as she raised one curious eyebrow. “with me?”

She smiled while shaking her head as they came to a crossroad. She parted from him to head towards the abysmal forest, whereas he would have to take the way that lead back to the bustling village. But he stopped to stare at her retreating back, noticing her dark tresses swaying with the gentle breeze. It was a first to see her hair down and the revelation surprised him a bit because he never cared for such details.

 

What made him smile the whole way back to his hut was that Sunhwa never kept her hair down, for the sake of her discipline but today seemed to be an odd exception but he sure wasn’t complaining.

  
  


The next day she showed up when he was heading back home in the evening, He was slightly surprised. So she wasn’t as stiff as he had originally thought.

 

“Does Minseok need me again?” by now it was an established routine that whenever Minseok needed an extra hand around the village he would send for Kyungsoo but he had an inkling this was about something else.

 

A crease began to mar her visage. “No, it isn’t about that-”

 

She cut herself off as she watched Kyungsoo turn away from her. “Then please let me have my moments of peace for the day. I’m going home.” He nonchalantly began to walk off, not forgetting to give her a cheeky wave.

 

“Will you lemme even finish?” She yelled from her spot. He stopped in his tracks. A smile dominated his features unbeknownst to her.

 

But he only cast a look over his shoulders.

 

“How about that practice you promised me?” He found the scene to be oddly amusing because not only did she refuse to make an eye contact with him but her stance looked like she was ready to bolt the moment this was over. Interesting.

 

He turned to face her fully. “What about it?” He decided to have a bit of fun with this.

  
  


Her eyes narrowed to slits in absolute annoyance. “Are you or are not gonna help me?” she snapped.

 

“Ah…..I see but I cannot really help you, you know….I barely know how to hold a bow, let alone shoot arro-” He smirked a little when he was pulled up by the collar of his shirt, the attacker shooting metaphorical arrows at him.

 

She snarled at him, “I’m in no mood for your games…-” She sure was short tempered, he noted. “Alpha..” The tone had right amount of iciness to it which changed that mere title to a downright insult. He was barely phased by it, however.

 

His visage lost all signs of amusement as he turned serious. “You could have just said so.”

 

Now it was Sunhwa’s turn to be confused, the grip on his collar loosening. But before she could even process anything, there was already a wolf standing in the place where once Kyungsoo stood. And apparently the wolf was beckoning her rather impatiently. She rolled her eyes as she followed him deeper into the forest.

  
  
  
  
  


Later when she questioned his mysterious words, he simply replied that she should have simply admitted that she had stopped playing games with her own self and decided to embrace her true form and that she was finally serious about being a hunter in the true sense.

 

He was subjected to her silent treatment for a week for that one comment about being a hunter because unlike Kyungsoo and the rest of the wolves, she valued her own skills above her wolf’s. But it was indeed true that she wanted to be a hunter in the truest sense, even if it meant training as a wolf instead of with her usual equipments.

  
  
  
  


* * *

 

 

 

_**The Ash Moon** _ __

 

_**Dreams are tiny wisps of magic** _

_**Meant to awaken the inner soul** _

_**A journey to the centre of oneself** _

_**In search of that ridiculous goal** _

_**Disguised as prophetic troll.** _

  
  


Kyungsoo wondered whether was it really okay for him to go on like this. It was already the third month of the designated one year and yet he had no luck in finding his mate. What stressed him more was the fact that no matter how much pondered over this, he felt even more serene than he had ever felt. It was as if his brain refused to be worried about this matter and was indecipherably calm about it.

 

It felt as if his heart was completely at peace, with itself and there was this nagging feeling that he had indeed found his mate.

 

Yet he was baffled that this feeling rose up within him like tides of ocean. On most days he simply felt peaceful but as the moon unveiled itself in the sky, with each passing night, the feeling would grow as if it were pulled by the gravitational pull of the moon. His feelings were rising up like the turbulent waves of the sea.

 

He really couldn’t decipher this situation, not at all but all his rationality could scream was; to find a mate  and it only made the cobweb of confusion even more tangled up in his head. He really should try harder considering how this journey was solely meant to find that other half of the whole.

 

It had been his goal and yet here he was doing nothing about it still feeling at ease as if it was some kind of divine indication that his goal was much closer to accomplishment than he had imagined.

 

Had he really found the mate, he had envisioned in his dreams? He knew it was a bit silly of him to have such simplistic dreams but he was always fascinated by this amazing connection between two people. He still couldn’t grasp how it binds two people like malleable pieces of jigsaw puzzle meant to fit just that one piece.

 

He had never cared much about succeeding his father because back when his dreams started their spiritual journey to the core of his being, succession was never a part of his thoughts, conscious or not. It was meant for his brother Seungsoo anyway.

 

He was a replacement. A last minute resort to save face. He wasn't the original choice and he understood that quite well even as a child so his goals began to take form in something else.

 

Hunting was a small part of it. He enjoyed it and therefore he found it natural that he wanted to be the best at it.

 

A vague image flashed in his mind’s eye and it shook him like little tremors of the earth. The effect was not mitigated in the slightest bit due to the fact that it had happened roughly a month ago. It still gave him the chills and flare of excitement at the same time.

 

Who was that mysterious person in the woods that day? Why was his wolf going crazy over someone he hadn’t even met? He clearly remembered the longing he had felt that night. It felt like he was going against each an every cell in his body when he had decided to retreat against his own wishes.

 

A cloud of longing began to loom over him. His body was screaming at him to go run over to that spot again in search of that person.

 

A person who glowed like the moon in the sky.

 

When his eyes shifted to the window, he briefly noted that it was almost full moon again.

 

The clouds of longing grew exponentially after that one observation. It was almost a thunderstorm of emotions going inside him right now and sleep evaded him completely.

 

He decided to go out for a walk.

 

It was a bad idea.

 

The night breeze coupled with the moonlight had always been able to calm him down but right now it having an opposite effect. The thunderstorm inside him was threatening to break all his walls down.

  
  


He decided to return to the safety of his hut and shut himself in utter darkness when he heard a rustle among the dead leaves accompanied by familiar sounds of an arrow being discharged.

 

A smile automatically bloomed on his lips.

 

He didn’t have to see to know who it was. There was only one person who used that.

 

Lately, Sunhwa was balancing several things in the daytime, leaving her too exhausted for any archery practice. And on top of all that, she had added learning to hunt as a wolf in the evenings alongside him in her packed schedule.

 

He may have not initially understood her drive to hunt using bows and arrows but he definitely respected her dedication to her craft.

 

What had earned his respect the most was the fact that she was willing to learn anything and everything in order to become the best hunter. And he definitely understood those desires.

 

He really had calmed down comparatively and he was thankful to the moon deity for the momentary distraction.

 

All the tiny bit of serenity that managed to seep into him momentarily vanished when he took a turn to find oddly familiar figures. A pair of pixies who looked like they were upto no good as usual. A pouch in their hands caught his eye. Something was definitely up.

 

He pivoted on his feet again, deciding to head back to the village, having enough of this walk. But a loud whistle stopped him.

 

“If it isn’t the arrogant Mister Wolf” Baekhyun spoke haughtily, the disdain clear in his tone. Well he wasn’t exactly pleased either. But Kyungsoo briefly wondered how did such a tiny body produced such a loud sound.

 

How did he manage to crash into that one pair of pixies who seemed to be immensely annoyed with him for reasons unknown to him. Just because...he refused their help? But it was a well known fact that finding a mate is a journey a werewolf always embarks on alone. Others simply could not complete this journey on their behalf.

 

The other pixie called Jongdae rolled his eyes at Kyungsoo, proceeding to then put a hand on Baekhyun’s shoulders in an effort to calm him down. “Leave him be Hyunnie. We have other things to worry about and most importantly, aren’t you excited for tomorrow?” A gleam lit up Baekhyun’s eyes as soon as Jongdae was finished. His eyes weirdly seem to sparkle like tiny fragments of stars littering the night sky.

 

The reaction definitely got him curious about the mysterious event, which seemed to somehow excite both the pixies.

 

“Oh yes!” Baekhyun nodded enthusiastically completely forgetting his previous demeanor. “Tomorrow is THE day!” .Both the pixies skipped away totally forgetting about him. Kyungsoo sighed out in relief, having escaped their snappish behaviour towards him or worse, one of their infamous pranks.

 

These pixies had once again reminded him the reason behind this impromptu walk. And that restless feeling had returned. He had this feeling that tomorrow was going to be special not only for pixies but for him as well.

  
  


The thought that ‘was he really looking hard enough?’ bothered him to an extent that he could not sleep a wink at night.

  
  


When the sun rose, his eyes were still open, lost in self-consuming thoughts, not having fallen asleep at all therefore having having no need to ‘wake up’.

 

He reluctantly broke his train of thoughts, fully aware that Minseok might pop in any minute now.

  
  


His day progressed slower surprisingly, the giddiness of excitement seeming making the hands of time tick slower than he had imagined. As the day progressed the excitement had bubbled from the pit of his stomach to his throat and it was choking away any other feeling in vicinity.

 

He had long grown accustomed to the giddiness that usually accompanies the full moon time but this restless state was much more amplified than that. It was beginning to feel like a pull of sorts.

 

What exactly was pulling him?

 

Also today he had cancelled Sunhwa’s training session because he was in no state to guide anybody when he himself felt at a complete loss and he couldn’t exactly place what he was feeling and what was the cause of it.

 

His mind was a complete blur from the moment he transformed into a wolf to participate in the hunting process to the moment he blindly hurled himself into the forest at Minseok’s howl. When the fog of confusion cleared from his brain, he found himself in a familiar trail. A trail which led to the clearing where he had first seen the glowing figure.

 

This time round, he had convinced Minseok to slightly shift the parameters of hunting grounds so that nothing stood in his way anymore.

 

His insides began to feel wobbly and the sound of his heart beat began to blare like a set of drums in his ears, all the muscles in his body tensing with anticipation.

 

He gingerly approached the clearing all his senses suddenly seemed to wake up at the sight of the same man in the glowing robes he had seen last time.

 

His eyes widened with each image signal his eye sent to his brain. The person seemed to be conversing with somebody but he couldn’t see who it was. But as soon as the scents hit him, he got a shock of his life to see it was the two pixies from yesterday.

 

He strained his ears to listen to the conversation. Was this ‘The Event’ they were giggling about yesterday?

 

“I am thankful to you two for helping me around here. This is a small price to pay in exchange.”

 

That voice…..it soothed away all the restlessness he had been feeling all these days. It extinguished all his self doubts. It was a voice he wanted to hear for the rest of the eternity. A perfect deep voice for his sensitive wolf ears.

 

Kyungsoo melted when he heard a melodic chuckle next. His joints were betraying him this instant.

 

“Well, You will have to pardon us-” It was Chen’s voice that had taken over. And his wolf almost whined in complaint.

 

“But this idiot-” Chen said, and Kyungsoo heard a faint smacking sound and strained his ears harder. “I think he inhales all the shiny stuff you bring because this is a new level of dazed I am seeing from him even with his obsession for this stuff.”

 

“It’s called Moonshine, Chen.” the voice chided gently. To which the pixie only replied with an eye roll.

 

Kyungsoo, again almost howled in delight. Almost. When his ears were filled with sounds of melodic chuckling. “I think it’s cute honestly.” Said the voice.

 

Since Baekhyun was dazed Chen was doing the talking today it seemed.

 

“So you wanted to inquire about this singer?” Kyungsoo could hear question marks in each word he said.

 

“Ah yes… I have been quite curious for a while and recently I have had this insane urge to know more about this person who sings up to the moon every night. I cannot stand not knowing who owns such a intriguingly beautiful voice.”

 

There was a long pause in between with everyone lost in their own thoughts.

 

“Frankly, I have no idea what exactly are you looking for….but we could help you if you want” Chen started again, hesitation marring his voice. It was then that Baekhyun’s voice joined the conversation again. ‘’ Anything for the moon deity!” he slurred with a giggle.

 

That revelation shook Kyungsoo to the very core. So much so, that all his predator senses failed him in that very moment and he ended up revealing himself to the three engaged in serious business. And Kyungsoo felt every bit horrified as the three whipped around to see his pathetic existence.

  
  


He wasn’t sure what had happened but somehow his joints and limbs had long stopped listening to him and were moving on their accord.

 

Kyungsoo didn’t understand when had his urges amplified to this extent but that had to be one of the dumbest things he had done because not only had he given away his location but he had also broken the serious conversation between the three and now three pairs of eyes were looking at him. One curious and other two a mixture of shock and tinge of annoyance.

  
  


“You!” Baekhyun screeched behind the glowing man. His daze had broken too.

 

Wait, these pixies recognized his wolf?

 

Chen shook his head, “make no mistake wolfie, we aren't magical creatures for nothing if we can’t tell something as simple as the wolf associated to the human.”

 

He didn’t seem half as annoyed as Baekhyun, just a bit exasperated. “So much for secrecy” he sighed out to himself which his sensitive ears were quick to pick up.

 

His wolf let out an inaudible whimper, seemingly stuck in a bind. His human side wanted to flee but his wolf wanted to stay.

 

“Who is this sweet friend of yours?” the glowing man finally spoke again, addressing it to Chen. His pretty eyes sparkling intensely as they examined Kyungsoo.

 

Chen was a bit taken aback of the sudden shift in the air as he looked from Kyungsoo to the glowing man locked in an intense gaze, and he flinched back a bit.

 

Baekhyun decided answer for him, “He is just a wolf we know. His name is Kyungsoo.”

Kyungsoo  was a bit surprised at the civil answer.

 

“You see Kai, our business here is done so we will take our leave.Till next time!” and with just that the pair disappeared.

 

Kai, as Kyungsoo learnt, broke his gaze away from Kyungsoo to smile briefly at the pixies, then turned to face him fully and both the wolf and the human inside the wolf almost dislocated their jaw at the sight of the man.

 

The man that stood before him was simply serenity and purity personified. All the restlessness from before had settled into a feeling of eternal calmness. He felt like he was floating in an endless times space pulled by the gravity of this man. His effemeinate almond shaped eyes, that softened the impact of defined jawline and full lips and tanned skin creating a very contrasting set of features that sublimed together to form a very heavenly combination that was unrivalled and unparalleled. As seductively beautiful his face was, his aura was very pure and innocent, in a rather shocking contrast. But this was the weird quality that kept reeling Kyungsoo in like some kind of helpless fish hooked onto a bait.

 

He blinked and Kyungsoo felt entrapped in the length of those long eyelashes that encased even prettier set of eyes. The more he blinked, the harder it got for Kyungsoo to leave the pull himself out of the man's orbit. Because honestly, Kyungsoo had never seen anything this pure and this untainted by filthy human hands.

 

But if the bait was this alluring then Kyungsoo didn't mind being demoted to a fish from a creature as pirdeful as the Wolf.

 

He had to be an angel, Kyungsoo concluded. Because he was glowing from inside out and it was perfect amount of radiance to keep Kyungsoo's sharp eyes gravitating towards him.

 

No, Kyungsoo was wrong. This being was gravity personified.

 

The man stood gracefully and approached Kyungsoo. “Will you mind keeping me company?”

The man tilted his head in question, that action alone dripping with sweet innocence of an angel. His lips curled into a smile and maybe this man was an angel.

 

But when Kyungsoo’s dim-witted brain processed the question, he whined before retreating a few steps, unable to form a coherent answer. However, his confusion seemed to be interpreted as a refusal

 

The man, broke their eye contact looking down in slight disappointment. “I see…” All the fur on Kyungsoo’s back stood in complete attention whenever this man spoke The whole of his existence seemed to be hyper-aware of this one person gazing at him curious wide eyes didn’t betray his countenance.

 

“Maybe next time?” the man asked, with a raised brow, that gentle smile making its reappearance.

 

But Kyungsoo didn’t stay long enough to respond as he had darted away as soon those words had fallen from those sinful lips. He couldn’t. He didn’t even know what he was getting himself into and as wrong as it seem to back away that last minute it felt liberating that he did.

 

No matter how much his body screamed at him to stay, he couldn’t. Not today, not right now. And his trance-like state in front of the man didn’t seem to help either. Logically speaking, the whole situation screamed suspicious to him but strangely enough even his instincts seem to be placated today.

  
  


He just ran and ran till he was sure he had escaped that strange mist, his heart in an overdrive despite the short stretch of run.

 

A bead of sweat trickled down his fur, at the dawn of realisation that hit him, and he froze like a mass of stone.

 

‘That man…..the Cathair Aine….he..’ his mind was blacking out  trying to process it all. But his lungs were falling short on air and his heart was still pumping hard trying to get the blood across in his system. And before he could make another coherent thought, he blacked out, falling anti-climatically on the dirt beneath him, leaves crunching loudly beneath his weight.

  
  
  


* * *

 

 

 

 

_**The Alder Moon** _

  
  


_**That magical gap has been bridged,** _

_**One that connects heavens above** _

_**And the earth below** _

_**So let the magic flow** _

_**And let it lead you slow** _

_**To where your heart desires the most** _

_**Without which you seem to be lost.** _

  
  
  


This was the third time Minseok had shown up at his doorstep asking the same question he had refused to answer for the third time. He knew it was out of character for Minseok to be this intrusive but Minseok also knew it was out of character for him to be found unconscious on the forest floor in middle of a hunt without actually participating in the said activity.

 

“You may not have answered my questions directly but one thing you have confirmed with your behaviour is that you are definitely hiding something.”

 

It was right on mark, just like Sunhwa’s arrows. ‘Strange,’ he noted that he thought of Sunhwa at a time like this out of nowhere.

 

“Even if i am hiding something, it has nothing to do with anybody.” he gave a rueful smile to nobody in particular. “It is my own battle to fight. I do not wish to discuss this with anybody.” He was glad that Minseok had come to care for him almost like a friend, instead of the watch guard he was earlier. He was sincerely thankful to Minseok for putting up with him this far and being genuinely concerned about him.

 

But this was not something he really wished to discuss with anybody. He himself was not sure what had transpired that night. And most importantly he wasn’t sure how he felt about the whole ordeal. As vivid as it was in his head, he really couldn’t put it into words and preferred it that way.

 

What will he explain to Minseok when he himself needed an explantion regarding this matter.

 

Minseok sighed glumly at his response. “Fine, suit yourself.” He began to proceed back when he gave a glance over his shoulder. “I am genuinely here for you, y’know?”

 

Kyungsoo made a final effort to smile, “And I sincerely appreciate it.” And with that Minseok was gone.

 

And the moment, Minseok left, darkness descended upon him again. Kyungsoo’s mind was refusing to deal with anything else for time being.

 

And with the darkness, came the thoughts that threatened to consume him bringing with them the specific set of images he wanted to avoid. But they repeated in the same order as always and he was almost convinced that he indeed was going crazy.

 

Something about that man had been weird since the get-go but when Kyungsoo’s eyes fell on where he stood, that is when his vision blackened leaving him with only thoughts of that day and no actual memory of it. The sceptic in him wanted to deny it all but if it wasn’t true then why would he freak out to the extent of fainting. It made no sense. No, that day did actually occur as weird as it was but he was sure that there were factual gaps which were preventing him from understanding those specific set of events.

 

After all there had to be some explanation for the man standing on the infamous Cathair Aine and having a radiance that paralleled the moon itself.

  
  
  
  


Kyungsoo was lost in these contemplations when the knocks on his door rang again.

 

Kyungsoo wanted to ignore it all and pretend to be asleep, guessing that it had to be Minseok, trying to coax him out of his self-imposed house arrest.

 

But deep down he had this feeling that Minseok wouldn’t intrude again after the confrontation that had occurred earlier. That was the sole motivation that made him get up to open the door.

 

He opened enough for his eye to be visible, “Yes?” He said sounding every bit exhausted he felt.

 

But the person on the other side was hardly deterred as they pushed his door open wide enough to enter and seat themselves comfortably in the room.

 

“Sunhwa?” His eyes were about to bulge out of his sockets. Well, this was definitely a surprise. She was the last person he had expected. “You seem shocked?” came the reply.

 

Kyungsoo, fumbled a bit. “I- I- Ah, well, I shouldn’t be I guess.” he said not meeting her eyes.

 

Her eyes narrowed which Kyungsoo definitely missed, in his fidgeting. “Aren’t you slacking a bit too much?” The words seemed to have slapped Kyungsoo because he recoiled visibly with eyes wider than normal.”E-Excuse me?” he managed to stutter out.

 

The jibes however had not ended, “Did you hit your head against a boulder or something? Is that why you fainted-” She was cut off by an irate Kyungsoo, “It is none of your business as to why I actually fainted.” His face was set like an impenetrable stone mask. “If this is why you came you here then I suggest you better head home-”

 

Sunhwa stood angrily.“I don’t give a damn about the real reason. That is for you to know but it is my business if you are forgetting your duties as my teacher.” Kyungsoo recoiled visibly again. “It has been a fucking week since that night, and you have holed yourself up in here without showing up for sessions and on top of that you don’t even bother to inform your only student that you need to mope some more, goddammit Kyungsoo. You are a poor excuse of a teacher-”

 

“I’m sorry” came a quiet reply in the middle of the torrent of words lashed out at him.

 

Kyungsoo refused to make eye contact again when Sunhwa faced him again. “I’m sorry for being so irresponsible and forgetting my duties..I- I-” Kyungsoo gulped nervously. “I don’t expect you to understand and neither do I wish to explain but I really am sorry.” He dared to chance a look at her when he spoke the last set of words.

 

Her features had softened up a bit, “But will sorry cut it, Kyungsoo?”

 

“Then what will?”

 

“Treat me to something nice and I will consider. You wasted my time by disappearing on me so it’s only fair if you put your money on the line too.”

 

It was quite easy to fall back into a banter with her. She knew what exactly to do to make him snap out of it. “Is that a way to treat your teacher?”

 

“Was that a way to treat your student?” She countered quickly. Kyungsoo shook his head fondly and gestured her to step out with him.

  
  


Those exhausting thoughts put on a backburner for the meanwhile. Maybe some company is what he actually needed.

 

 

 

 

* * *

  
  
  


_**The Willow Moon** _

 

_**May the storms in your head** _

_**And the ones outside your hut** _

_**Be put to rest at last.** _

_**May everything be mend** _

_**And peace be restored** _

_**Allow your heart to heal instead.** _

  
  
  


Last month, he had completely avoided the prospect of hunting, making up excuses about being unwell. When in truth, he refused to go back until he had solutions to his questions. He knew the prospect of hunting during the full moon would only pull at his desires to visit that cliffside near that meadow again. And it wasn’t a lie infact, as he tried his hardest to ignore the pull of the moon to lead him out of his hut.

 

However, he had made sure not to slack off on Sunhwa as he had promised earlier. And now he was sure that there was nothing much to be taught as she was quick learner, more so than he had expected with her lacklustre attitude towards hunting.

 

She may have been a quick learner, but she was absolutely clueless when they had began, it was like he was trying to teach a newborn pup and that is why it had taken this long.

 

But he found it weird that no one had even bothered to go through the basics with her. Every wolf was taught the basics the very least, whether they liked it or not. But she was completely new to it. And even her instinctive reflexes seemed to have shut down due to the lack of basic guidance.

 

Maybe she will tell him one day, if she wants to and if he stays long enough that is.

He was considering being on the move again, because he needed to look harder for a mate, or escape in other words. That day terrified him for some reasons, his father’s warning about Cathair Aine resonating in his mind again and again.

 

But surprisingly that failed to lessen his curiosity, he noted dismally, staring glumly at the rain outside. Rain made him feel blue and gloomy from the inside and he never liked the feeling

 

He set out to look for Minseok, deciding to take his advice on the matter.

  
  
  


“So what brings you out for drinks all of a sudden?” Minseok cast a cursory glance at the raining sky. “Must be important I believe.” Kyungsoo understood his curiosity with his body language alone. They were seated in a quiet bar, the rush hour not started quite yet as streaks of dusk began to finally breathe in the sky, ultimately transitioning into a dark sky, void of any light, not even stars as the clouds had formed an impenetrable barrier

 

Neither of them had touched their drinks.Minseok decided to change this.

 

He picked up his glass. “I want to start my journey again.” Minseok paused before he tipped the glass in his mouth, letting the liquid sink in, all the time eyeing a tense Kyungsoo.

 

“And where do I come in?” Minseok finally decided to break the silence since Kyungsoo’s mind had wandered off again. And Minseok had noticed how frequently Kyungsoo seemed to zone out ever since that night. He’s smart enough to conclude that something happened that was bad enough to shake Kyungsoo like that

 

Kyungsoo looked down glumly at his drink, “I don’t know….I just wanted to let you know..I guess.”

 

Minseok sighed. “If you are asking me, then I would want you to stay…..but I don’t want to be an obstacle in your journey so I don’t really know what you want me to say.”

 

Kyungsoo reluctantly picked up his drink and downed it in one go.

 

“What’s this? It’s so fucking strong.” Kyungsoo complained with a frown as he placed the glass back on the table

 

Minseok smirked, “That is why you shouldn’t space out while ordering drinks, who knows what poison will be served to you.” Kyungsoo grimaced at the dramatic choice of words. “ It’s called Moonshine. For future reference.”

 

That word struck a chord somewhere in his brain. As if it resonated with another memory of his, a memory that he tried to bury with consecutive failures.

 

The memory of that glowing man and his magnificent voice. Both equally embedded in their respective places in his brain.

 

_“It’s called Moonshine, Chen.”_

 

‘That’s it!’ Kyungsoo exclaimed with a vigour that had Minseok almost choking out his drink. That was what that man had given to those pixies in lieu of their generosity.

 

He now knew what exactly he had to do.

 

Leaving behind an incredulous Minseok, he braved the rain in search of those pixies that might provide a solution to his problem.

 

Minseok should have felt annoyed at how Kyungsoo had  treated him, inviting him to drinks and then leaving without any explanation and a bill to pay. But Minseok calmly sipped drink, his guessing that Kyungsoo might have found a reason to stay after all.

  
  
  


Kyungsoo blindly ran back to the forest, back to the meadow by the cliffside. He knew he is going down a blind trail but he had no other way to locate those pixies.

 

His clothes were soaked and his hair was sticking to his forehead but he paid no heed to those details, trying to look for a clue that may lead him to them. “Looking for us?” came a voice and Kyungsoo whipped around to find the source of it.

 

The pair of pixies he was looking for!

 

“Hey! How did-”

 

“-We know that you were looking for us?” Baekhyun finished his question with a tiny raised brow.  

 

“We just did.” Chen answered examining his nails.

 

“What do you want?”

 

Kyungsoo felt a bit sheepish at their knowing expressions.

 

“Can you tell me about that man…” Kyungsoo trailed off when Baekhyun narrowed his eyes dangerously. “uh...That man in glowing robes.. The one that gave you moonshine?” Baekhyun’s face did not change at all and Kyungsoo’s hopes began to crash slowly because he knew what that look meant.

 

Then Chen whispered something in Baekhyun’s ear that completely broke his previous demeanor. “Are you serious?” Baekhyun shot a look at him and then back at Chen, who nodded solemnly. “You better be right about this then, he muttered irately.” This conversation wasn’t meant for Kyungsoo to hear but he heard it anyway.

 

“And why should we tell you that?” Baekhyun questioned with his arms crossed.

 

Kyungsoo hit a dead end with this one.. He didn’t know if his answer was convincing enough for these two who were resolute upon keeping that man’s identity a secret.

  
  


“I think, I may have found my mate….” Kyungsoo hadn’t planned to be so blunt but desperate times call for desperate measures and unknowingly the words flowed out. The tiny pair of eyes widened followed by a gasp from Chen. Then Baekhyun turned to Chen with a helpless look adorning his face. Chen just shook his head. Kyungsoo was slightly awed at their ability to converse like this because he was sure something important had transpired there but he couldn’t figure out what.

  
  


“Ugh I need the goddamned Moonshine for this conversation. It’s too serious for me.” Baekhyun sighed out in disdain. “What do you want to know about him?”

 

Kyungsoo was quick to respond. “When shall I see him again?”

 

The pixie crossed his arms, “Not till the next full moon.”

 

Kyungsoo’s brows furrowed in thought. What had full moon got to do anything with-

 

“He will tell you himself, when he sees you. That is not our job. Our job here is done.” He turned away from Kyungsoo gesturing Chen over.

 

Kyungsoo tried to stop them but to no avail, the words wouldn’t leave his mouth. He had so much to ask that everything was a cobweb of mess in his head and before he could make a coherent thought, they had disappeared.

 

Kyungsoo glanced up at the sky, noting the waxing moon, calculating how long will it take for it to be full moon and trying to make heads and tails of the logc. He walked on the trailed that lead to the meadow. He was mostly lost in his thoughts, barely aware of where he was going when he stumbled upon the Cathair Aine again.

 

Now that he was looking at it closely, he was sure that the stone indeed was the infamous Cathair Aine. It seemed to hold some luminescent property of its own as it seemed to shine even in the dark forest, where there was no other source of light except the occasional full moon.

 

_“It’s called the fool’s moon, you will know it when you see it.”_

  
  


His father’s words seem to echo louder, the more he inspected the stone. Other than the slight weird luminescence, it seemed like any other ordinary stone. But he still wasn’t convinced about how a mere stone was capable of turning people insane.

 

Had others who stumbled upon this stone seen the man too? Is that what causes them to go crazy?

  
  


It seemed like a plausible explanation to the ever sceptic Kyungsoo who found these superstitions to be really very odd. The memories of how that man once stood on the same stone came crashing back in waves and the only feeling that accompanied it was longing. Deep intense longing and it only became worse when he looked at the mass of stone, high up in the sky. 

  
  


He just prayed he had the strength and patience to survive it all.

  
  


He reluctantly came back to his cottage, unsure of what to feel and what to do with himself.

  
  


The only solution he saw was to just sleep it off.

  
  
  
  
  


Minseok wasn’t surprised when he saw Kyungsoo at his place a few days later. He had been expecting it ever since Kyungsoo had run out on him while drinking.

  
  


“Uh...I am Sorr-” Minseok shook his head. He leaned against his door frame. “I am sure you had your reasons.” Kyungsoo got sheepish. “Yeah, but that was no excuse to leave like that.”

  
  


“But that’s really not why you are here right?”

  
  


“I have a request to make... “

  
  
  
  
  
  
  


Kyungsoo was strolling by the pack lands, enjoying the serene evening, wondering where his decisions lead him to. Decisions, decisions-

  
  


“KYUNGSOO !”

 

He turned around irately to face Sunhwa with his hand on his ear, flinching at the volume and now the looks he was receiving from others. “Not so loud!” He whispered. He had forgotten about her and now there was no way he could avoid it.

 

“Are you really planning to leave Kyungsoo? And why do I never know anything?” She said with her arms crossed and eyes flared. Kyungsoo stopped for a moment to admire her features. That firm, determined look suited her really well. She was pretty like this. Who was he kidding, she was always pretty and her graceful form when drawing a bow. That was when she was the prettiest.

 

“Kyungsoo!” She snapped her fingers irately. “Are you with me?”

 

“Huh? Uh yea. I am.”

 

“Really Kyungsoo….At times like this, you really are unreachable. I wish I knew what was going on in that mind of yours.”

 

Kyungsoo patted her head gently, not noticing her flushing face. “You really don’t need to worry about that anymore. And who told you about my plans to leave?” He asked with his eyes narrowed.

 

“I met Minseok in that bar you both went to. And he isn’t gonna order for two Kyungsoo.”

 

“Still...he shouldn’t have ratted me out so quick. Anyway, it was more of an impulsive decision.”

 

“You sounded pretty sure to him though.” He ruffled her hair just to annoy her some more. “Like I said, you needn’t worry about such things. And no I am not leaving ... not for now at least.” She was quick to shove his hand off in favour of fixing her hair. She tried to avoid eye contact with him by doing that.

 

“You really are a poor teacher Kyungsoo.” She sneered. “I am leaving since you want to be a mysterious bastard.” Kyungsoo smiled fondly at her retreating figure.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


Kyungsoo, with adrenaline thrumming his veins, rushed to that spot, he knew where the man would be present again.

 

And when he got there, there stood, the object of his daydreams and every other dream under the ethereal light of the moon. It seemed like the moonlight was meant to illuminate every fibre of his being and his existence alone.

 

He was sitting on that stone again without a care in the world.

 

“You came again!” He exclaimed with a soft gasp, a look of genuine happiness crossing his features.

 

His features were otherworldly. It’s as if he didn’t belong to this world at all. A perfect balance between soft yet sharp. He was so beautiful, it cast a halo of radiance around him or maybe it was Kyungsoo’s lovestruck imagination. Kyungsoo almost wanted to look away from him, except that he couldn’t. The man was his gravity.

 

“So we meet again. Come sit with me Kyungsoo.”

 

“Baekhyun and Chen told me a bit about you. I wanted to ask more but then they left and then you ran off and fainted.” The man pouted fiddling with his long white sleeves. How he knew about Kyungsoo fainting was a mystery to the wolf.

 

“ I am Kai.” the man smiled gently at Kyungsoo. And it made Kyungsoo’s insides tingle wonderfully. What were these new sensations that this stranger was evoking in him. “Aren’t you happy to see me Kyungsoo?” He asked cheekily.

 

And to be honest, he was. “I am.” Kai flinched when he spoke so suddenly. “Why are you surprised I am a werewolf you know, and we can talk.” He seemed a bit starstruck.

 

“No, it’s not that, actually i was looking for this singer, who sang praises to the moon each night. I instantly fell in love with his voice and I have been looking for him.”

 

‘’And you employed Baekhyun and Chen for the help. No wonder you have had no luck.” Kyungsoo scoffed.

 

Kai gasped indignantly. “Don’t say that! And besides your voice is quite like the singer’s.”

 

Kai seemed to be flustered upon admission, as he pointedly wouldn’t look at Kyungsoo. “Is it?” Kyungsoo now knew why. The singer was him and Kai had been looking for him. Sort of.

 

“Is that why you seek my company?” Kyungsoo teased goodnaturedly. He thought of keeping his identity hidden for a while.

 

“Hmph!” Kai was seriously adorable without even trying. He was pouting but he still was the most gorgeous being he had ever seen.

 

They spent the entire night talking about everything they could, Kyungsoo was rather surprised to learn that Kai loved hunting as much as he did. His insides overflowed with joyous glee over such a simple fact. But he was secretly pleased that there was something else other than his voice that binded him to Kai even if it was something as insignificant as common interests but Kyungsoo was overjoyed to learn such simple things about his mate. Because Kai wasn't just Kai, yo kyungsoo he was also his mate so even the smallest details mattered.

 

When the first light of the dawn began to hit the horizon and then it struck Kyungsoo how much time had passed.

 

Kai got up suddenly. walking over to the cliff adjoining the meadow. “I am sorry Kyungsoo, it’s time for me to leave.”

 

Kyungsoo’s jaw set in place. He didn’t want him to go. Not so soon. Not when they had just met. “Why? Why must you go?” He couldn't bring hiself to contain the flare of agitation that lit up his insides.

 

“It’s almost dawn Kyungsoo…” His smile was rueful.

 

“Where do you have to go?” Kyungsoo challenged, ready to convince him to stay longer.

 

“Back to where I came from.”

 

“Where do you come from Kai? What is all this mystery surrounding you? First, you wouldn’t be available on days other than full moon and then those pixies refuse to tell me anything and then you keep talking in riddles...What is going on?” Kyungsoo’s voice took a sad turn at the end.

 

“I…..come from the Moon.. you probably don’t believe me but I am running out of time so I cannot explain much so this is a goodbye for now..I guess .” He was fiddling with his sleeves again.

 

Kai began to fade with the first rays of the sun that hit the cliff where he stood. And frankly Kyungsoo’s jaw was ready to unhinge. “I will see you again next time. It was pleasure meeting you, Kyungsoo” He smiled beautifully at Kyungsoo one last time before he faded completely. The way Kai pronounced his name, struck a chord within his heart, the force of which was currently destroying his insides, leaving no room for rationality.

 

A gust of wind hit Kyungsoo’s face solidifying the sudden loss and absence he felt. As if the gravity that had held him down all this while had been liberated suddenly and he was floating in endless space again not knowing what to do.

 

Kyungsoo sadly turned away from the spot, retreating back to his cottage, his head up in clouds or rather over the moon not noticing a figure of a man spying at him by the cliff. He could have probably sensed the man in his wolf form but Kyungsoo’s brain had temporarily short circuited and had shut down for a while trying to process the information overload and onslaught of emotions.

 

 

* * *

 

  
Suho paced around restlessly in his sea bed, the images still haunting his mind. His faithful servant, who had been watching him all this while was feeling really unsettled watching him pace like this.

 

"How long do you plan to go on like this, my lord?" His face creased with deep lines of worry he stood on his hunched back, trying to keep up with his master. 

 

Suho paused midstep, snarling out a reply, “I won’t stop until I have Kai all to myself.” 

 

But his servant was far from being phased by such minute displays of anger. “What do you plan to do my Lord?” He needed to shift his master's anger to be able to derieve a productive solution for his own sake or he will waste his time away, drowned out in thoughts of his precious being stolen by another but he won't able to do a thing to stop it.

 

Suho's pace finally slowed down to a stop much to his servant's relief. “I need to think it over.”

 

“There might be a little someone that may prove to be a hindrance.” The servant was well aware that this may irk his master but he needed to ensure that his master didn't forget certain key factors before planning something.

 

“Then we get rid off him. But have patience, I need to think over this properly. We cannot be hasty with our plans or it would be lain to waste.” Determination was surging Suho's words and now the servant was sure that his master's plan will go smoothly and flawlessly. 

 

“I agree, my lord.”

 

'It had to be Kai or nobody else. And he isn’t going to let anyone hinder him.' His fists clenched at the mere thought of that wolf he had seen with Kai. Damn these animals, always foiling his plans.

 

 

* * *

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you pistachio for working with me for these two chapters. You really helped my work to shine. Please tell me what do you think in your comments.
> 
> Read. Comment. Enjoy  
> -ink_stained_hands


	3. Full Moon

 

_**The Hawthorn Moon** _

_**Being passionate isn’t wrong,** _

_**It’s a beautiful thing after all..** _

_**That mind-numbing dedication.** _

_**But be ready to swallow the fruits** _

_**Born of your own passion.** _

_**Taste; a matter of your cultivation.** _

  
  
  
  


Suho felt calm, like waves of the ocean he resided under. More like, sea was an emulation of troughs and crests of his own feelings and emotions.

 

And since the waves of the sea behaved like his extended yet involuntary limbs, he had mastered the control of his emotions. He had learned to keep himself calm despite how aggravating the situation maybe. For the sake of his emotions he cannot afford to endanger the many creatures dependent on sea for their survival and sustenance.

 

They were his responsibility so he had to tread with care but there were times when he felt enraged like the molten lava and felt like exploding as if he were a volcano and those times have brought great chaos and destruction.

 

No the kind of anger he felt right now ran much deeper and much colder. He didn’t feel like uprooting the entire planet of its hinges. No, his mind was clear and focused only on one goal. He could see his path clearly and destroying the world wasn’t a part of it. He didn’t want to do such senseless things, he had a responsibility after all. And he held his responsibilities as his top priority.

 

His judgement was far from being clouded by unnecessary emotions. It was in fact better than ever before and he had an idea about what he was going to do.

  
  


He watched the sea with storm brewing in his irises yet his face remained unchanged like the rocks his eyes were fixated on.

 

“Master?” A voice hesitated.

 

He only looked over his shoulder as a sign of acknowledgement.

 

“Will you be leaving tonight master?”

 

Suho turned away again. “Let’s see” His eyes narrowed a bit in trepidation. His plan was nearly perfect. But there was a cog missing. Somehow, he wasn’t sated with his plan

  
  


“The usual, Jae.”

 

The servant was a bit shocked at the sinister look his master’s eyes held. No, it wasn’t that. He was long used to that. It was the speck of hesitation that crossed his eye for a fleeting second like a brief tail of a comet shooting across the sky.

 

Jae contemplated a full second before speaking, “Are….. you sure Master?”

 

He expected a barrage of harsh words shooting him down.

 

Suho tried to focus on a tiny fish floating about, having lost its way, flapping around aimlessly. No it wasn’t a conscious effort. More like his brain chose to be stuck to that sight alone, as if trying to give him an indication of sorts which he seemed to be missing by an inch somehow.

  
  


Jae’s eyes widened when his ears strained to hear the sentence his master uttered subconsciously.

 

“Am I?”

 

The servant hesitated for a bit, trying to decide the best course of action.     `

 

Jae sensed the slight turbulence that passed them which was uncommon for the deep sea bed they resided in. But he knew better. It wasn’t a random turbulence of the water. It was his master’s own reflection. He had been right. This turbulence was the copy of hesitation he had seen in his master’s eye for a split second.

 

Humans or Gods who resembled humans; everything about them could be used in deception but not the sea. The sea down here never lied. It didn’t have a mind of it’s own. But rather an extension of his master’s mind.

 

And he knew that sentence wasn’t meant to answer his question. After centuries of serving him, he had learned to read his complicated master just right. Anyone else and they would have misinterpreted that statement.

 

But the thing was, his question wasn’t asking about tonight either.

  
  


The moon would be harsher tonight. It’s serenity would burn him more than the flares of the Sun itself. And what’s more, there will be unnecessary visitors.

  
  


But like an addiction gone bad, he could not stop himself from scalding himself by the cold light of the moon if it meant he got to see Jongin again. He was hopelessly pulled by the gravitation of the moon and the higher the moon got in the sky, the more thrilled he felt and it was reflected by the waves of the sea getting increasingly persistent on the surface.

  
  


He returned to staring out of the window again, absently noting the lack of a flailing fish. He briefly wondered if it was alright.

 

His eyes zeroed in on gleaming eyes of a predator and the gleam was reflected in his own eye when he turned to his hump back servant

 

“You know me well, Jae. it’s the usual.”

 

“Right away, master.” This time he did not hesitate.

  
  


 

* * *

 

  
  
  
  
  
  


_**The Oak Moon** _

_**Protect your precious; But** _

_**Hold your ambitious desires!** _

_**Lest it turns pernicious** _

_**It might become the fire** _

_**That burns down the pyre.** _

  
  
  
  


Kyungsoo’s mood swings rose and fell like the tides of the sea. And he knew the cause behind it very well too. But meeting Kai; the Lunar deity was the best event amongst it all. No matter how he felt, how aggravated he would be just prior to meeting Kai, spending time with him always calmed down waves of turbulence in his mind.

  
  


And going by his rapidly changing moods, he was forced to schedule his classes with Sunhwa after seeing Kai. He really couldn’t attempt to teach someone before it. Heck, he avoided any social contact before the full moon, knowing his delirious moods would get him nowhere.

  
  


And currently that’s what he was experiencing. A goddamned mood swing.

 

He just prayed to Lunar Deity, he blushed a little thinking about him now. But he sincerely prayed that no one found him like this. He could barely conceal his irritation that kept bubbling up to the spurred by boiling anger that seemed to have come out of nowhere. But now it was an unavoidable part of him. Even if he hated it, it was regarding himself after all. And it was not some infected limb, that he could amputate on the account of horrible gangrenes and throw it out into the sea.

 

He could only put up with this ire that kept rising up and down.

 

Yet, he tried his best, lest social contact was inevitable.

 

First there was Minseok who somehow always around the corner to drag his ass from bed everyday. Kyungsoo was convinced that the man would drag his ass back from hell if he needed to. He was a fearless monster and nothing seemed to scare him. He still remained a perfect portrait of everything calm and serene.

 

He almost made Kyungsoo burn with envy. That serenity might not have been a look suited on an Alpha wolf but it was something unique only Minseok could wear, yet maintaining a stern countenance underneath all that calm. It only suited him because his authority never lied in his ability to scream at his subordinates.

 

His authority became more prominent in that calm visage. In quiet and clear words that left no room for questions and eyes that were firmer than the earth they stood on. A quality that won over everyone easily and made him so easy to trust. Earth may quake but those eyes wouldn’t falter, wouldn’t waver.

 

He qualities made him a natural leader. And somehow, when Kyungsoo reflected upon himself, he hardly found himself fitting to take the role. The more he observed Minseok, the more he felt himself wavering. And that lil’ sneaky thought of him being a  mere replacement for his brother continued to haunt him. A mere seed of doubt and a whole tree of problems.

 

Is this what hitting a low felt like? He thought he already had been through that phase when he was caught up in the mess regarding Kai being his mate. But this was a new kind of low he felt he had hit. A direct blow to his confidence. It was like a small paper cut. The thought itself might have been small but it annoyed him like a bitch.

 

All the energy was zapped from him with a mere thought.

 

“Kyungsoo dear, I have begun to wonder who is the master and who is the student here.”

 

He recognized the tone of the statement before he could even the register the voice itself. He chuckled.

 

“Come to annoy me again?”

 

How could he forget. There was Sunhwa too.

 

She entered his hut with a smirk on her face and her arms crossed.

 

“Why dear, I thought it was my annoying presence that kept you alive and awake? Not annoying enough for you?” She leered at him.

 

“Not annoying enough indeed.” His lips quirked up on their own in a fond sort of way.

 

“My personal knight come to save me from this eternal darkness. O’ Brave knight…..What shall I do for thee.”

 

Sunhwa rolled her eyes, her lips quirking up, “ Oh quit the dramatics Kyungsoo. You are becoming more and more like a drama queen these days.” She shook her head but Kyungsoo froze for a second.

 

But she was sharp as always. “Oh? You thought I wouldn’t notice? Kyungsoo, dear it’s you who is failing to notice the changes around you.” Her words grazed him leaving shallow cuts in its wake. But he was aware that he has been unfocused for these past few weeks

  
  


Her face stretched into a full cheshire grin, “Knight? I am surely flattered.”

 

Kyungsoo reflexively snorted, “Those arrows surely had me fooled for a second there but then my eyesight cleared and I realised it was just a foot soldier.”

 

“In that case I will just wait for my Knight to come save me.” Kyungsoo only wanted to play along with the threatrics but he couldn’t deny the truth interwoven in his words.

 

“Are you?” The question threw him off guard because he had hoped Sunhwa wouldn’t notice the change in their flow.

 

But every Hunter was trained to detect the slightest alteration in the air around them, barely leaving any room for mistakes.

 

He choked out an answer somehow, “Yeah…. Maybe I am.”

 

He jerked a little when Sunhwa decided to sit beside him. He wasn’t wriggling out of this anytime soon it seemed. This thought put him on a slight edge again. If Sunhwa noticed his terseness, she didn’t prod.

 

“Kyungsoo, you have been my teacher for a while now…” She trailed off, probably trying to word her feelings correctly.

 

“Have- Haven’t you ever wondered why did I learn to hunt using bow and arrows?”

 

“I would be lying If I said it didn’t cross my mind….” he ran a tense hand through his shaggy mane. “But then I realised it wasn’t my place to question.”

 

“If you haven’t already noticed, I wasn’t supposed to be a hunter anyway. I wasn’t supposed to be anything actually…...I wasn’t even supposed to survive.”

 

Kyungsoo suddenly got the gist of the whole situation but he wasn't gonna interrupt her at this point.

 

“I was a premature pup to begin with. My chances of survival were close to..well...none.” She took a deep sigh. By some miracle of gods I survived but I was deemed too weak for any strenuous activity like hunting.

 

And my family was okay with it since I am an Omega. And Omega’s don't exactly need to hunt.

 

Growing up, I had developed a sort of hatred for those wolves who ran out to hunt with the first light of the moon.

 

But I couldn’t hate hunting so I ended up with my trusty old arrows.”

 

Kyungsoo understood the underlying message that there wasn’t a single person willing to teach her to hunt considering her condition. And being an Omega her family wouldn’t support her either.

 

Rules were subjective to the nature of the pack. Whether a Omega could hunt or not, was all dependent on the pack leader or the Elder. The strictness of the rules and how far a rule could be stretched was upon whims and fancies of those who lead the pack.

 

And for the first time, Kyungsoo realised that this pack was not as liberal as he had thought.They too, were clasped by ironclad rules that a pack wasn’t supposed to break. And Sunhwa’s story was letting him have a glimpse of the pack dynamics he hadn’t bothered with until today that is.

 

Judging by the grim turn her story seemed to take he could be sure that even if Omegas were allowed to hunt, an exception to the rule were runts obviously whose survival was more important to the family than their liberties. He was sure that as a pup Sunhwa wouldn’t have been allowed ten foot within the range of hunting grounds.

 

A rueful smile grew across his face but he said nothing. But there was more to her story apparently which continued after another sigh of a shaky breath.

 

“My Mom always knew I wanted to be out there, be amongst all those hunters who stood tall and proud after a successful hunt.” She looked down deprecatingly.

 

She let out a small chuckle, “She always gave me that fond look when I stood by the door to watch their return…..she said my eyes really held the power of a thousand stars as i watched the hunters in fascination. ”This time the smile on her face was faint but real.  “Then one day she made me sit me promise that I wouldn’t do anything that would hurt me.”

 

With a mental jolt, Kyungsoo realised that there was something else that he was missing out other than the obvious.

 

She kicked out her legs like a little kid when she spoke again, this time making an eye contact again. “My first reaction to that was quite apoplectic.” Her voice continued in hushed soothing tones as if this was the first time she was openly talking about this matter.

 

“Sometimes I would see my mother’s eyes dim with a hidden kind of sadness but as soon as I tried to confront her about it head on…..or…..discreetly she would deny it vehemently enough for me to give up eventually.” she snorted again.

 

Kyungsoo couldn’t bring himself to give inputs in this matter. It wasn’t his place anyway.

 

“But then I thought about this a lot...It was the to the point where I was crashing into walls headfirst because the mom I knew never stopped me from doing what I really desired.

 

That’s when I met Minseok. He was guffawing at my sorry state and my temper flared up assuming him to be like any other Alpha.

 

It brought a small smile to Kyungsoo’s face. Imagining a clumsy Sunhwa and Minseok making jests at her expense. But he finally connected the missing piece to their relationship. He felt as if he understood their dynamics better thinking back to the easy going banter he had witnessed when he first arrived in this pack.

 

“But instead of ridiculing me when I tried to punch him, he caught my punch easily smiled and said ‘let’s talk’.

 

“Did you still punch him?”

 

“-‘Course I did!”

 

“That earned you brownie points from me.”

 

Sunhwa snorted which loosened some reigns of tension that were beginning to grip them by their necks.

 

She began in that tone of hers, “You-” she stretched out the vowel in replacement of all that she had to say or probably thought better of it.

 

She shook her head. He knew what she had meant to say.

 

“Well, Minseok told me really absurd stuff. It was…. to me back then.”

 

“He told me to rethink my mom’s words again. And for that statement alone he almost received another punch but something about his phrasing made me reconsider.”

 

“Damn… And here I was actually looking forward to Minseok finally getting beaten up.” Sunhwa snorted but was quick to shush me.

 

“Somehow her words about not getting into dangerous business really got to me and it was then I understood the depth of her simple, typical motherly worry.”

 

And Kyungsoo pieced all the jigsaw pieces together as well.

 

“And when she didn’t object to my bows and arrows, I knew I had made the right decision and not just that but her words had finally reached me.”

 

A serene smile spread across her face which stunned Kyungsoo for a second.

 

“It is out of determination and willpower that I have somehow made it here, stumbling, grumbling and all.”

 

“So I take it that Minseok taught you some vague basics of hunting?”

 

“Yea, he did…. Essentially he was breaking one of the very important rule of this pack so he had to maintain a top notch secrecy whenever he he did and to be honest I could hardly ever practice with him trying to be careful of getting caught and he too, didn’t have a lot of free time from his pack duties as the Young Alpha Leader.”

 

“That explains things.”

 

“But I am thankful that he at least tried to teach me the basics, in case there was a dire emergency.”

 

“So… now you have the permission to hunt, because I don’t see Minseok’s underlings chasing me yet.”

 

“The village Elder had me go through various endurance tests before he saw me fit for the activity. At the end of it all, when I didn’t give up and passed them all, he sighed told me to do whatever I wanted which I believe, was his consent ultimately.”

 

She turned her serene face towards him. “And this is why Kyungsoo……”

 

Her face went dead in matter of a second..”I hate it when you skip our sessions like the useless bum you are!”

 

“I am no bum!” Kyungsoo tried to defend himself.

 

She got up to leave and Kyungsoo’s eyes followed her movement. “That solves things because you just admitted you are definitely useless.” And she walked away with her arms crossed and chin turned up haughtily.

 

In Kyungsoo’s defence, the only reason he let her have the last word was because he felt too lazy to yell and defend himself all the way across to where she was.

  
  
  


 

* * *

 

 

Somewhere away, a lone figure calmly watched the turbulent waves thrashing against the rocks with an intent to break the very cliff they stood on. They couldn’t be sure if that was a good sign or not.

  
  
  
  


 

* * *

 

  
  
  
  


_**The Holly Moon** _

_**Love transcends time and space** _

_**Towards the infinite end.** _

_**Bodies may perish,** _

_**Words may fade.** _

_**But true feelings that tether souls,** _

_**Shall never be swayed.** _

 

 

  
  


“Have you fallen in love before?” Kyungsoo was resting on his paws seemingly apathetic but this question bothered him more than he liked to admit, even to himself.

 

Kai turned to him with a radiant smile, “What brought this on?” He knew where this was going or atleast what was going on in Kyungsoo’s head. But the glimmer in Kai’s smile hurt Kyungsoo’s eyes, and pierced right into his core. He closed his eyes in response.

 

Kai’s smile widened.

 

Eyes closed, Kyungsoo still felt his retina might burn from the sheer impact of such a gleaming smile. Suddenly he wasn’t all that curious about his question

 

Kyungsoo let out an inaudible sigh of relief when Kai turned away from him, taking his radiance elsewhere and stopping the continuous assault on his eyes

 

“I had.” Kai muttered softly, his words dissolving away with the wind. Kyungsoo wasn’t able to decipher any emotion from the sentence but he did catch the past tense.

It would have been better for both of them if he hadn’t asked such a ridiculous question.

  
  


“She was the prettiest of course”

 

“Tell me something new, Moon prince.” Kyungsoo should have the held back the urge to sass and this might be the hole he dug for himself but he never said anything about not protecting himself from the sticks and stones that were inevitably there.

  
  


Kai snorted. “What do you know? I could be in love with a woman who had snakes for hair.”

  
  


“You were the one who said of course.”

  
  


“And you were the one who was acting jealous, so I thought I could exploit that side of you some more.”

  
  


Kyungsoo opened one eye, expressing his ire. “Are all Gods meant to be manipulative?”

  
  


“Yeah, it’s a prerequisite Kyungsoo. All Gods have to be.” Kai said it with such annoying innocence that softened the impact of his statement yet Kyungsoo hated to admit that amongst all this he still found Kai endearing, manipulation and all.

  
  


“Her name was Krystal. And before our relationship came to be, she was a close friend of mine so before anything else we were a pair of good friends who understood and complemented each other well.” That automatically shut Kyungsoo up. So they were back to this. Kyungsoo pathetically tried to pretend that he was completely unbothered.

  
  


“But when you can live on forever, there’s a lot that can go wrong and Love alone is not enough to bind two people together. Fuel runs out, things change and feelings fade.

  
  


“Is immortality your problem or falling out of love?” This time Kyungsoo was genuinely curious without the hindrances of his negative emotions. This really forced him to think about issues he had sidestepped in the happiness of finding his mate.

  
  


Kai grimaced a bit as he honestly tried to answer the question. “A bit of both and at the same time it could be neither? I don’t really know but those were the conclusions I finalized after thinking about it for years and in grand scheme of things, those were definitely one of the reasons.

  
  


“What are you talking about?” Kyungsoo did not like the rueful smile that was gracing Kai’s features at the moment. The annoying glimmer from before was reduced to inexistence and despite the smile painting his lips, his eyes seemed a bit dull. The smile wasn’t enough to reach over and and reflect the same intensity of brightness in those dark irises.

  
  


“Things happened and I was forced to banish her sister to the mortal realm as punishment.”

  
  


“She threw a fit?” It wasn’t that hard to guess.

  
  


“Sort of yeah, but not in the conventional sense. Krystal wasn’t that type of woman who threw hissy cat fits.

 

“She refused to see my face from then onwards breaking our relationship and friendship in the process. It was a cold declaration, uttered by a maiden drowning in the pool of her own tears.”

That rueful smile was tethering itself onto his soul and he didn’t want to continue down this lane at all.

  
  


“And you let her go? Just like that?” Was his mouth not connected to his brain at all? Didn’t he just say he didn’t want to do this? What in the world was he doing?

  
  


“How could I go against the eyes that wished death upon me? She might have been sobbing for her banished  sister but when she decided to banish me from her heart, her eyes held the steely cold conviction her words wanted to convey. And I could not find it in my heart to cling onto her and beg her for forgiveness after I destroyed what remained of her family.”

  
  


This was not what he had expected at all. Kyungsoo was drowning in self regret as he watched a range of emotions play across Kai’s face weighing more on the grim side. It was beginning to manifest as physical pain now but Kyungsoo held it all in for his mate’s sake.

  
  


“That sort of thing……” Kai interlaced his own fingers as an act of keeping himself together.”That sort of thing is unforgivable even to myself….. I would have done the same if not worse in her place. And if my punishment was to let her go then so be it.”

  
  


In that moment Kyungsoo wished he was human again so that he could embrace this man and protect him from his own hauntings. He wanted nothing more than to comfort him within the reaches of his arms. He tried the next best option.

  
  


He got up and laid himself in Kai’s lap, hoping to remind him of his present. A present in which Kyungsoo was there too, willing to accept him with open arms.

  
  


Kai choked on a sob as his hands began to comb through Kyungsoo’s dark fur. “You are such a softie, Kyungsoo.” But it was his eyes that had softened immeasurably. Kyungsoo whined lowly, “Like you are the one to talk.”

 

What did Kai even know? He was willing to be anything as long as Kai’s smiles glowed with brightness that paralleled the radiance of the orb glowing above in the sky.

  
  


“Did I mention you are adorable too?”

  
  


“You didn’t have to.” Kyungsoo grouched quietly.

  
  


“Oh, don’t be like this, eh?” Kai poked his ears which twitched spasmodically and in return it encouraged Kai to repeat the same action. Kyungsoo plopped down with a dramatic sigh. His eyes wandered back to Kai who was playing with his ears, all the clouds of gloom cleared from his beautiful face.

 

Kyungsoo wasn’t really fond of being called adorable but the more his eyes took in Kai’s bright smile, the easier it seemed for him to make an exception for him.

  
  


“It was like the pot calling the kettle black.”

  
  


But Kyungsoo was thankful for the diversion. He really didn’t want to discuss this topic any further. It was pretty evident to him that Kai had struggled with that decision for years- no maybe centuries even.

  
  


How he wished he could liberate some of the pain.

  
  


There was another thing bugging him as a result of this conversation, the subject of immortality.

  
  


While Kyungsoo could live more than average humans, there was a limit to his lifeline compared to Kai who had none. He was meant to live forever as the protector and guardian of the moon-

  
  


“That is why you never see the Sun and the moon in the same sky ever again.”

  
  


Kai’s deep voice speaking in low tones really startled him and his reaction provoked a chuckle from him. What the heck was he talk- Was he referring to……

  
  


“The Sun herself, banished me forever from her court.”

  
  


The winds blowed around them, whistling from anger and the water below sloshed irately against cliff they resided on. Kyungsoo froze for a second before relaxing again against Kai’s warm embrace. It was pretty harsh losing your love and your best friend all in a day and to be banished the same day? Cruel in his opinion. He didn’t have a very high opinion of Krystal as of now, whatever she may be.

  
  


And since then I have been alone for so long that I have pondered upon this enough to last me a thousand lifetimes. And now I want this all to stop. I don’t want to live in this solitude anymore where I come home only to a sea of regrets spawned by my own tears.

  
  


“A thousand lifetimes?” He sure had, Kyungsoo thought to himself a little sourly. The idea of immortality was beginning to lay roots of annoyance in Kyungsoo’s head and slowly and surely it was growing like a damned virus which he was unable to get rid off.

  
  


Kyungsoo looked up at Kai. He didn’t know why but he inwardly prayed for something, he wasn’t really sure what but it might have something to do with Kai being the moon deity he revered he so much.

 

“Kyungsoo…..will you promise me something?”

  
  


Kyungsoo whined out a yes.

  
  


“The next full moon...I will- I will ask you something…. Will you please answer me honestly? What I mean to say is… Will you be here again? The next full moon?”

  
  


It was Kyungsoo’s turn to chuckle this time, “You didn’t have to ask. I will be here accompanying you whenever you want me to, from the end of the dusk to the beginning of the dawn, even far and beyond.”

  
  


Kai smiled serenely in response and it was honestly so exquisite that Kyungsoo would have no regrets dying the very next second, if that image would be the last thing burned onto his eyelids.

  
  


He slowly rose up, about to leave when Kyungsoo’s jaws latched onto his untainted robes.

  
  


Kai turned around in absolute surprise, bending down to his level, “What are you doing Kyungsoo? Please let me go? Please?” His voice was merely a whisper at the end.

  
  


Kyungsoo shook his head with the piece of cloth still in his mouth and whined in response.

  
  


Kai cradled Kyungsoo’s face with his gentle hands trying to reassure him, “Kyungsoo, I promise you….I will return again, the next full moon. So Please?” He didn’t seem very happy either but for some reason he was determined to go.

  
  


Kai unhooked his robes from Kyungsoo’s teeth and pulled them gently signalling Kyungsoo to let go, Kyungsoo reluctantly unlatched himself from the cloth all the while whining softly and pitifully.

  
  


It must have been really pitiful for Kai bend down at his level again, stroked his head in firm yet unhurried strokes as if to calm him down.

  
  


Kyungsoo watch with a pain shooting and flaring up his insides, as Kai’s graceful form began to fade with first rays of the Sun.

  
  


“We will meet again Kyungsoo.”

  
  


“I promise you.” Those last words were like sweet caress of the breeze on a serene night. They were too light, a mere whisper but it left a soothing effect in its wake, leaving him calm and peaceful. Gracing him with all the patience that he needs for their next time to come.

  
  


Kyungsoo whined pathetically for the world to hear and he seriously didn’t care if anyone witnessed him behaving like a dog abandoned by it’s master. His shoulders were no longer squared like a prideful wolf and his muzzle was curled towards his body refusing to face the world. All in all he seemed like a pitiful creature, wandering aimlessly like an undead creature.

  
  


“Do you have time to spare, Kyungsoo?” At the sound of his name, Kyungsoo’s entire being jerked up in action. He was sure he had never heard the voice before and it was better to be on guard around strangers. A voice inside him was screaming to be wary of the newcomer and his body seemed to agree wholeheartedly with the harrowing voice in his head.

  
  
  


A form emerged from under  the dark cover of the trees fringing the cliffside. He only let out a low growl communicating his displeasure and reluctance.

  
  


When the figure came to stand under the soft rays of the rising sun, Kyungsoo was stunned speechless. And it was then that he returned to his human self again but Kyungsoo’s brain was too preoccupied with the visuals to care about anything else.

  
  


To a lesser extent, even this man had a glowing aura surrounding him just like Kai. He did not possess the radiance of Kai’s beauty but he was magnificent in his own way. If anything his aura seemed to be dimmed shade of sky blue unlike Kai’s glowing brightness but he was sure that this man was a being like Kai. But his presence gave off a feeling of pseudo calmness as if his serene and tranquil aura was all a part of the tip of the iceberg that seemed to be enshrouding something terrifying underneath all the layers.

  
  


Kyungsoo did not like the wave of chill that wrecked his body when he smiled. “I am sure you have a lot of things distressing you.” The man spoke quietly which Kyungsoo was sure was only meant for him to hear.

 

“And I do not intend to waste your time any further so let me get to the point-”

  
  


Kyungsoo’s instincts screamed at him to run and this time he knew better than to disobey. Quietly, he tried to leave the scene.

  
  


“You love Kai don’t you?” Kyungsoo froze in his path. “And it concerns you because?” He wasn’t going to be discussing his deep seated fears with some god random stranger or a stalker, judging by the intel on his love life.

  
  


“Because I care about Kai.” Kyungsoo snapped back to face him. “Is that a reason enough for you?” Kyungsoo was unable to locate the exact source of his growing unease and things were changing at a pace faster than he could process.

  
  


“Like I said, I am sure you have things to take care of-” The strange god-like creature gracefully approached him with that same annoying smile on his face as earlier.  Probably it had been there all along.

 

“-But I am sure I have a topic or two that could interest you?”

  
  


Kyungsoo’s eyes narrowed. “Kai is a lovely person, isn’t he?”

  
  


The werewolf relented unwillingly in an irked monotone. “Hurry up and get to the point will you?”

  
  


“I was getting there, you see Kyungsoo, by now you must have understood that it may be quite easy to fall for Kai and I am really not doubting your feelings for him but what worries me is the fact that how deep do you intend to fall for him and how far are you willing to go.”

  
  


This whole situation was getting weirder with increasing brightness of the morning sky. “Who are you exactly? And what do you want?” Who the hell was this stranger to test his feelings for Kai

  
  


“I am just a humble caretaker of the sea. And as for your other question, we are getting there.”

  
  


“But I am sure, whatever it is, if you truly love him then you will have no problems coming to one certain conclusion. In any case my job is to make you aware of the choices you have and the choices you will have to make sooner or later.”

  
  


“Choices…?” The werewolf was still confused.

  
  


The stranger turned to him with a smile masking his face, “Yeah choices….about Life, Death and…….” His tone made it seem like he was talking about the weather and not something morbid.

 

It was probably Kyungsoo’s distorted imagination but the empty smile turned a tad bit sinister at the end.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


 

* * *

 

  
  
  
  


_**The Hazel Moon** _

 

_**May not be the wisest thing to do** _

_**To extinguish the flame of life** _

_**Burning brightly inside of you** _

_**But the fear of pain and grief** _

_**Masked and labeled as love** _

_**Lead to contorted beliefs.** _

  
  


The clouds began to settle in the sky with the howling winds coming to a rest as well. The dull clouds stretched beyond his field of vision extending far and wide and Kyungsoo feared the rain that came with it. Looking up, he saw a warped view of the sky, marred by grey floating masses seemingly infinite. And this same enshrouded sky failed to comfort him during restless nights like the ones he was having recently.

 

There was no Moon in the sky either and he loathed the darkness he found himself lost in.

  
  


Kyungsoo scowled, eyeing the letter in his hands. A beta had delivered it earlier and he intended to ignore its existence completely, considering it was from his father. He had a vague idea about how it must be pertaining to his mate and the whole journey itself.

  
  


He closed his eyes when Suho’s words from earlier swam in his subconscious, egging him to make a decision. And the scrap of paper in his hand was not helping either.

 

How was he supposed to tell his father that he has been stuck in this pack for eight moons now when his journey ends after the next four moons. What was he even going to say? That his mate was this beautiful yet the legendary deity of the very Moon they relied on? And even if he said that, who was going to believe him?   

  
  


Not his father, that’s for sure.

  
  


His eyes noted the gently darkening sky as it began to gracefully darken towards absolute nothingness. Graceful or not, he still loathed the rain that was bound to follow the grey blanket of clouds. He reluctantly got up to leave because he had much more pressing matters to address.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  


Minseok and Sunhwa regarded him with curious looks as he took a seat in front of them. He came up with all sorts of creative ways to ask the question that has been eating his insides but failed to notice the silence stretching between them like a gap. His inner turmoil made him unable to see the fact that both of them were waiting for him to speak and quell their curiosity.

  
  
  


Annoyed by the unnecessary awkwardness, Sunhwa coughed angrily to get Kyungsoo’s attention.

  
  


“It’s so pathetic that I can’t even pretend this is deja vu anymore.” Minseok mumbled pitifully clicking his tongue at the wolf which hurriedly made Kyungsoo swallow his drink and in his panic he ended up  choking on it. A really poor attempt to stall the conversation.

  
  


Sunhwa got angrier watching the man choke on his drink, “If you really didn’t want to talk then why did you even invite us out here with a cryptic message saying: “Let’s talk” and then all your side of conversation contains is this!” She jabbed her finger angrily at him, making no move to comfort him.

  
  


“I have had enough!” She shouted. “Just…...say…….the…….magic words……..Kyungsoo…...I’ll put... you….. out….. of…….. your…….. Misery.” A dark aura began to surround her petite frame.

  
  


“You are scaring others in the bar too Sunhwa.” A calm voice cut through her growing haze of darkness.

  
  


A maniacal eyes turned to him instead. “Scaring others? Is that what you think this is?” Her words were enunciated by promises of death layering over them like a fog of chill that descends down early mornings during winters.

 

Her voice suddenly rose up again, once again effectively scaring the other customers and Kyungsoo briefly tried to check if she had any to drink before he arrived here. “Then what do you call this shit who has been like this for several weeks already!” And that was all it took for Kyungsoo’s head to weigh down by shame.

  
  


“Everyone has bad days……” Kyungsoo tried to poorly defend himself in absolute vain because Sunhwa’s next look had him wishing for early death.

  
  


“Just cut it out already!” Minseok’s clear voice shot through their cloudy arguments. He bowed to the shocked customers in apology and sat down again, pushing down the the arguing pair to sit as well. Minseok appeared all calm on the surface but his annoyance was slowly brewing into anger because even Kyungsoo felt the authority raging through his body when he yelled at them to shut up.

  
  


Kyungsoo could only imagine what it must have been like for non-Alphas. It wasn’t any good if the dark looks from the bartender were anything to go by. If not for Minseok they might have been kicked out already.

  
  


“Do you still need a finely printed invitation to speak?!” Minseok barked at him.

  
  


“N-No…” He began hesitantly, “It’s just that I am really not sure how to word this….” He trailed off sheepishly. Sunhwa’s eyes flashed at him again and he almost cowered in fear.

  
  


Minseok sighed and eyed the drink in his hand, “You better start before this shit gets me tipsy.”

  
  


“Say, if you found yourself a mate…..How far would you be willing to go? I am just curious….”

  
  


And for the first time in the evening, Minseok’s brows scrunched up, “Well, Isn’t it a given?” He sipped his drink, “As far as they want us to go.” But Kyungsoo was far from being satisfied by this answer.

  
  


“Is that what you believe or is that what you you were made to believe?”

  
  


“Would you kill yourself if they asked you to?”

  
  


“To answer your first question, a bit of both but I have yet to get there so I can’t answer that for sure.” Kyungsoo opened his mouth to reply but was cut off by Minseok.

  
  


“As for your second question, Unless that’s what they really desire from the bottom of their heart, no, I would do no such thing.” He leaned back in his chair with a certain distant look in his eye. “If they really are your mate, then they wouldn’t be asking you to do such a thing. Would they?” He had a weird smile on his lips and faraway look in his eyes which could be easily mistaken for Alcohol influence.

  
  


Honestly Kyungsoo wasn’t satisfied yet but he admired Minseok for answering as honestly as he could yet maintaining cool touch of realism.

  
  


Kyungsoo couldn’t help but notice these little details about Minseok and how each quality only enunciated how much of a great leader he could be and when Kyungsoo looked at himself, he seriously wondered whether he was fit for the position? What if there were people like Minseok in his pack out there, who were much more capable than him, much more suited to lead than he was?

  
  


Wasn’t that waste of talent and resources?

  
  


But Kyungsoo was in no place to be thinking these self deprecating thoughts so focused his attention to the conversation. “And you Sunhwa?”

  
  


“Why are you asking me this? ‘S not like I have any experience of any sort to answer that question.” She crossed her arms, staring down at Kyungsoo, irately.

 

“Then let me rephrase that a bit…”

 

“If you had to choose between the call of your mate or the call of duty? Which one would you choose?”

 

“Your rephrasing didn’t work. At all. The question got weirder if anything.” She was blunt as ever.

 

“I know” he whimpered pathetically and she sighed loudly again.

 

“It depends? But it’s not like we can ignore the call of a mate. It can be fatal and you know that too.” His questions were scaring her a bit. Had he finally lost it?

 

“I would love to see this mate of yours that has you tangled up like this.” Minseok chimed in forcefully.

 

Sunhwa snorted on her drink.

 

“But what if your mate wasn’t supposed to exist?” Kyungsoo blurted out after hours of agonizing over this issue. Minseok raised an eyebrow and Sunhwa chuckled. Kyungsoo closed his eyes.

 

“Stop cracking jokes Kyungsoo. It’s fine if you don’t want to introduce them.” He shut up once he realised they were serious. It’s not like he didn’t want to introduce them, It’s just that he was running out of time and there were things he still had to look over.

  
  


He eyed the dark sky outside and realised for the first time that rain had let up finally. But it was only momentary. This silence wasn’t meant to last.

  
  


He eased himself back on his seat and took a calm, unhurried sip of drink and then had a strong urge to spit it out as soon as the drink hit his senses. Damn Minseok! He should have known.

  
  
  
  
  


At night when the noise of the heavy downpour kept him from his sleep, he decided to read the letter out of boredom. He lit a candle and patiently sat down to read.

 

The rain outside got impossibly heavier as if wanting to drown out all the noise in its wake but Kyungsoo found comfort in this overwhelming whether. At Least he had rain to accompany him in this hour of the night. He wondered if the sea was still as calm as ever or was it a mess of turbulence? Whatever it was he finally felt confident enough to face Suho.

  
  


He knew what exactly he wanted to pursue.

  
  


And for the first time in his life he was grateful for the moonless sky.

  
  
  
  
  


Kyungsoo watched with amusement, standing hidden as the great Lunar deity Kai, twiddled his thumbs in nervousness. “My answer is yes!” he yelled out to him

 

Kai turned to beam at him, “But I haven’t asked anything yet and it’s not fair that you give me a heart attack upon your arrival.”

 

“But you were about to!” Kyungsoo smirked up at the tall God. He seemed taller when Kyungsoo was in wolf-form.

  
  


Kai faked his anger further, “Don’t make me smack you.”

  
  


“Then why don’t you?” Kyungsoo found these series of developments interesting, amusing even.

 

“Then shut up and close your eyes.” Kai ordered sternly.

 

Kyungsoo’s eyes widened challengingly. “Oh?” His lips quirked up. “Close my eyes? Are you going to kiss me or what?”

 

Kai blinked rapidly to cover up his mortification. Why did he have to be so adorable? Kyungsoo lamented internally but he kept his composure.

 

Kai got provoked by his challenging gaze, “I said, shut up and close your eyes so that I can aim a good punch at your smug face.” He raised his palm threateningly and for a second Kyungsoo almost believed his little act but when he felt those soft palms cupping his jaws, he smiled contentedly and let Kai place a peck on his lips.

 

Oh how much he regretted being a wolf right now. His first kiss was cockblocked by his own self. But he tried to memorise the feel of Kai’s lips for as long as it lasted. The sensation of his lips could be compared to falling of a petal on his lips, pliable and smooth. Delicately placed over his own as his hold got gentler compared to his firm grip earlier.

  
  


The kiss mostly ended up on his muzzle not so much as his lips but he treasured the memory and the feeling attached to it all the same.

 

The kiss may not have been perfect but it was certainly memorable. And that’s what mattered.

 

They parted with identical smiles plastered on their faces.  
  


“Will you sing me a song Kyungsoo?” Kai coaxed him, stroking his fur gently.

  
  


“Hmmm” his hands felt pleasing to touch. But he really didn’t have to do much, Kyungsoo would bend over backwards to fulfill his requests even before they were uttered from his mouth. He was beyond whipped.

  
  


“Sing? What song?” He just tried to humor him a bit, fully aware of the limited knowledge Kai had. Baekhyun and Chen weren’t the most reliable sources when it came to music and he doubted they ever discussed that whenever they met.

 

“You know the one….the one about Moon? It’s like a praise to the moon? I am not sure what it is called but it went like ‘so precise and so pristine….’ uh...I can’t sing well but I am sure I heard these lyrics”

 

Kyungsoo’s eyes snapped out open, effectively broken out of his daze. “Don’t give me the look Kyungsoo.” Kai averted his gaze resolutely. “How long were you planning to hide the fact that you and the singer were the same person?”

 

Kyungsoo opened his mouth to respond but no coherent sound came out. Kai held up his hand.

 

“The sound I want to hear from you is that song, now come on, we don’t have all night.” It was a playful statement but it still pierced Kyungsoo’s soul. Kai’s gaze became soft as he cupped his muzzle once again.

 

“Please?” His voice was lost in the gentle breeze but Kyungsoo’s heart beat rose up in rhythm like a drum of its own when he heard the tender request, a drop of honey drizzled onto his eardrums, wrecking his body with shivers.

 

“Shadows all around you as you surface from the dark……..” Kyungsoo sang softly so that only Kai alone heard his praises. And Kai tried to absorb it all with his eyes closed and a smile decorating his beautiful face.

 

His face looked so serene and stunning in that moment, that the song resonated from the depths of Kyungsoo’s heart, spilling into his voice as he sang for his Lunar deity, his muse, his lover.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


 

* * *

 

  
  
  
  
  


_**The Vine Moon** _

_**It’s the time to convert** _

_**Desires into necessity** _

_**Ambitions into reality** _

_**Ideas that you must assert** _

_**On the paths you walk.** _

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


“Minseok! Minseok!” A wild Sunhwa came bounding up to a large russet coloured wolf.

  
  


Minseok had a dreadful feeling which only amplified itself seeing her so anguished but he compelled himself to be calm. His panic will only set her off further.

 

“Have you seen Kyungsoo?” Something dropped inside Minseok because he too realised that hadn’t seen Kyungsoo anywhere and the hunt was about to begin too. He wasn’t the type to disappear off to hunting grounds without informing him.

 

“I haven’t seen him anywhere the whole day today, so I went to check on him because I assumed he had left without informing any of us but weirdly enough his belongings are still around. All I found was this letter.” She was calming down bit by bit but she was still radiating worry and fear.

 

He put one of his paw on hers to give her some reassurance even if it was momentary. “It’s addressed to him?” Minseok was confused.

 

“It says that his brother has finally returned to the pack and has agreed to become the Head Alpha.” Minseok eyed Sunhwa who only shrugged. They had no idea about the situation with his pack. Not that they had ever asked but they simply felt like Kyungsoo would tell them if he felt like it.

 

“I still don’t understand.”

  
  


“What if he-” Sunhwa started out in a trance-like state again.

  
  


“No, he wouldn’t.” Minseok cut her off because he didn’t want her to complete that statement.

 

“But-”

 

“No.” Minseok almost snarled at her for implying something he obviously wanted to deny. Seeing her flinch in fear, he toned down his aura to a neutral state. “He isn’t the type to get depressed over things like this. However I feel like his disappearance has got to do something along the lines of those weird questions he was asking us the last time we met up for drinks.”

  
  


Sunhwa’s face contorted with realisation. “That must be it! His disappearance surely aligns with the weird behaviour he was displaying that day.” Her face fell with another realisation. “But that still doesn’t tell us where exactly has he vanished off to.”

  
  


Things weren’t adding up at all but they both knew that it all of this was somehow connected to Kyungsoo in a way that only made sense to him. Regret creeped into their bones for not questioning Kyungsoo enough that night. They had wanted to but also wanted to respect his privacy. Now that things were going in a downward spiral, regret was the most prominent feeling, bubbling under the surface.

  
  


Minseok rounded up all the Alphas and Betas and organized them into search parties. He quickly assigned them their areas and sent them off. He himself decided to be with Sunhwa.

 

He then instructed the Omegas to carry out the hunt as per the usual schedule if they wished to and he assured them he would keep an eye on them in case they wanted to go.

 

There were several howls heard that night but none of them belonged to Kyungsoo.

 

Sunhwa could only pray for his safety.

  
  
  
  
  


“The moon has gone red.” The Elder Alpha observed quietly. He observed the commotion from his hut and was vaguely aware that the  source was the Young Alpha who had arrived in his pack some moons ago.

  
  


“She too is howling.” He chuckled to himself noting the absurdity of his statement.

  
  


But the idea wasn’t that far fetched.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  


“Nobody has any leads yet.” Minseok almost let out a curse. They were getting nowhere and the idea that Kyungsoo had left their pack didn’t seem so far fetched anymore but Sunhwa insisted that he hadn’t left them. He knew she was trying to be optimistic but the despair was growing on him, making him agitated and restless.

  
  


“Then where do you suppose is he?” Minseok’s eyes flared up as he rounded up on the Omega. “Don’t you see? His scent has vanished from this packland. We don’t have any other trails…..Where do you suppose is he?!”

  
  


_“Screaming and yelling at her_

_Isn’t going to solve much, cur.”_

 

Minseok eyed the glowing creature, resting lazily on a tree branch. He wasn’t in the mood for their annoying rants right now.

 

_“Talking isn’t a necessity,_

_Saving a friend is top priority.”_

 

Sunhwa’s eyes got dangerously narrow at that comment. “You know something about Kyungsoo don’t you?.” Her voice was rising but the creature was as unfazed as ever.

 

_“Not fond of talking to dogs either,_

_But you won’t get to him either.”_

 

“So you do know something about Kyungsoo. Spit it out already!” She was borderline screaming right now but her mind failed to process anything that wasn’t related to Kyungsoo.

 

_“He chased the lunar deity all the way to that cliff,_

_Resting stone of Aine of Knockaine, is where you sniff.”_

  
  


Thanking him hastily, the pair of wolves rushed to the spot directed to them, as Baekhyun eyed them in disdain for disrupting his sleep and his precious dreams of Moonshine. ‘Wolves are sure troublesome’ he thought exasperatedly before reclaiming his spot again.

  
  


“If they are so troublesome, why do you even involve yourself with them?” Another voice squeaked by his ear. Baekhyun blindly smacked Chen’s face who was hovering close by. Close enough to be irksome. “And who gave you the right to disrupt my sleep?”

 

Chen knew that he wasn’t going to get an answer to his question. Baekhyun could be so confusing at times but Chen still understood his curvy and loopy ways.

  
  
  


In no time, Minseok and Sunhwa made it to the meadow by the cliff and began to furiously search for him. They paid no heed to the dazzling meadow which only lit up and bloomed with the moonlight but instead began to look for the infamous Cathair Aine.

 

Sunhwa wandered over to the edge of the cliff as Minseok sniffed around the stone.

  
  


A blood-curdling scream resonated in the vicinity which frightened Minseok to the core. He rushed over to where he scented Sunhwa was, already fearing the worst.

 

He cursed as she stumbled on his way down the cliff but the sight that greeted him was something he could never imagine bracing himself for.

 

It was Kyungsoo’s unmoving body washed ashore by the sea.

  
  


It was a wasted effort but he still checked for Kyungsoo’s pulse and heartbeat. His heart dropped into his stomach when he found neither. He couldn’t even bring himself to stop Sunhwa from shaking Kyungsoo’s dead body. All the exhaustion from earlier seeped into his body making him feel heavier and heavier until he dropped unceremoniously onto the sand.

 

He absently watched the drops of water, wet the sand. Was it raining again? He glanced up at the clear night sky. It wasn’t raindrops on the sand but teardrops. Tears, he didn’t even realise he was shedding.

 

Sunhwa was bawling, quietly not taking her eyes off Kyungsoo’s drenched body.

 

Minseok forced himself to let out a howl, calling all the Alphas and Betas involved in searching Kyungsoo to let them know that they had found him at last.

 

Minseok laid there, weak from exhaustion, his mind completely blank. He didn’t make a sound yet the tears continued to flow like little streams down his face. He knew it was his responsibility as an Alpha to comfort the Omega at a time so dark, but he himself had no strength, let alone lending it to others for support. He felt so blank, so empty that he couldn’t bring himself to do even move from his pathetic position.

  
  


Was Kyungsoo really gone from their lives? Was he to never return? Minseok had an urge to scream in denial of answering these questions. He blankly watched Sunhwa drench Kyungsoo in her pools of tears having no will to do anything. His brain couldn’t fathom that the body would never move or speak again. Was this what loss really felt like? Loss of a close friend? Loss of loved ones?

 

His eyes hopelessly wandered over to the moon glowing bright red and sent a silent prayer for Kyungsoo’s soul.

 

It wasn’t until the search party arrived that Minseok made any move to get up. The general spirits of the wolves plummeted watching their leader look so worn out and haggard. Pitiable  even, with his eyes as red as the glowing sphere floating in the sky and tear tracks knotting up his fur.

 

But they kept silent.

 

Minseok got up slowly and stood by Kyungsoo’s body beside Sunhwa, in a silent lament.

 

They quietly watched the crimson moon, praying to the Lunar Deity to watch over Kyungsoo’s soul.

  
  


_That night, the wolves were silent but it was the moon that howled._

 

* * *

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you nico for encouraging me on so that I could finish this monstrosity. Your words really fueled me to finish the chapter when I thought of giving up entirely.


	4. Waning Crescent

A/N: Im sorry nico. Pls enjoy the chapter.

* * *

 

_**The Ivy Moon** _

_**In this endless cycle of life, death** _

_**And maybe even rebirths,** _

_**Time stops for no entity** _

_**And life continues** _

_**Despite all your losses and gains** _

_**Keep sight of yourself despite all pains** _

_**To keep moving ahead** _

  
  
  


The waves crashed violently against the shore, the tide of the sea having risen to the peak as the glow of the cold light of the moon tried to scald anyone that dared stand underneath it to peak at the rare crimson moon. The sight lamented in language of tragedy and anger accompanied by intervening sequences of loneliness and grief.

 

And the same was mirrored in the eyes of the Lunar Deity as he stared unblinkingly at the grave of Do Kyungsoo, his friend and his lover, whom he had found after so many decades and centuries. Laid cold and unmoving, buried underneath the very ground he stood on.

 

He wanted to cry; but even tears failed to console his endless grief and he ended up falling into a downward spiral of thoughts that began and ended at regret and he found himself lost, unable to function as his own thoughts chased him everywhere he tried to escape during the day and haunted his nights by consuming his dreams and turning them into nightmares.

 

And in middle of this chaos, he even forgot to cry.

  
  


He watched with a detached sense of envy as a woman and a man shed tears like a waterfall by the grave. He spied from afar not wanting to interrupt their grieving for Kyungsoo.

 

He didn’t feel like facing Kyungsoo today. With a parting glance he turned away from the scene only to meet with a sight of the Sea God shooting him pitying looks.

 

Turning the other way, he tried to walk deeper into the forest. He didn’t want to deal with anything tonight. He just wanted to grieve for Kyungsoo all by himself.

 

“So your love went only so far that you won’t even say goodbye to your lover?” Suho taunted his defeated back.

 

“I thought Love made people brave but all I see,” Kai heard the smirk in that pause,  “-are cowards around me, well atleast Kyungsoo was brave enough-” Suho’s monologue was cut off mid sentence by the dangerous swoosh of Kai’s hunting staff, that went sailing past his ear, lodging in the bark of tree closest to him.

  
  


“Were you a little more courageous, you would have surely had my head as a reward to quench your thirst for blood.” The moment he completed that sentence, Kai had already summoned his hunting staff lodged in the tree and aimed the blade right at his heart, eyes filled with streaks of blood and his pupils dilated looking like a bloodthirsty predator desperately trying to pin down his prey.

 

Suho merely sidestepped that, anticipating his movements, not moving to summon any weapon of his own. But before he could relish in the satisfaction of escaping one attack, Kai was making another series of attacks all of which were laced with the intent to kill.

 

The speed with which Kai was moving made it seem like he was at multiple places at once. And honestly he was no match for the hunting god Kai when he decided to unleash that form.

 

But this was no skilled hunter, neither a strong predator but simply a declawed, howling beast that had already forgotten it’s own name or the reason he was fighting for. It was like an empty being that only knew one thing; to kill. And in this state he could easily injure Kai if he wanted to because this beast cared not about the methods it undertook to fulfill its bloody desires nor it cared about its own body that housed the very monstrosity.

  
  


A barrage of attacks were rained down sloppily at him, all of them lacking the skilled maneuver of a hunter,only overly compensated by the killer intent. And that was the only reason he narrowly dodged these attacks because the intent made it sure that he would get sent to the underworld the moment they hit.

  
  


The hunting staff sent humans right away to hell but to a God, it was more like an order of punishment. It was what gave Kai the authority to banish any other God to the underworld. Each god had their own way of dealing out punishments.

 

Kai’s cold unforgiving eyes were more like a punishment than any banishment he could ever hand out. It crushed his very existence to see those empty eyes echo the same loneliness he had experienced and same longing that had consumed his soul but the knowledge that this longing was for another, it pierced his chest devastatingly slow, all the way across leaving painful bursts of sorrow in its wake, even as he continued to dodge Kai.

  
  


Suho’s entire being felt the tide of the sea recede away from the cliff and it left a hollow space in his heart to know how sensitive the sea was to his ups and downs.

  
  


 He defenselessly continued to evade Kai’s attacks which missed him narrowly each time. Kai aimed for his guts next which he avoided by ducking underneath the staff that went above his head and entrapping Kai’s foot so he fell down.

 

Instead Kai read his leg movements and entrapped him, making him stumble down.

 

He evaded Kai’s lethal attack from behind but in no time he was already in the air, twirling his long staff and pinning him down to the ground by his robes as he straddled his torso, leaving him complete deadlock.

 

There was no way to escape this time, Suho’s sad eyes watched the rise of the pointed end of the staff looking utterly defeated and destroyed, yet maintaining a vacant visage.

 

“Your eyes could compare to Krystal’s wrath at the moment.” The Protector of the Moon got angrier and brought down the staff with even more force as Suho closed his eyes in defeated acceptance.

 

The sea below retreated away to dangerous lengths despite the moon; a calm before the storm.

 

When Suho felt nothing sharp piercing his body, he turned slightly to peak at Kai. His entire form was trembling above Suho and as much as he wanted to comfort him, he couldn’t bring himself to. Who knows? This time he might actually make a hole in his heart if he made even a small attempt.

 

“Why. Won’t. You. Fight?!” Kai screamed the last word abruptly in a hoarse voice. “Why won’t summon your trident? Why? That scream resonated within his entire body and Suho felt it too. Using the support of his weapon, Kai got up to leave.

 

“I could ask you the same, why didn’t you banish me?” When Kai tried to retreat into darkness silently, without acknowledging him with a response, the tide of desperation within him only got higher.

 

The sea continue to crash against the cliff getting higher as if it were reaching out to the raging moon

 

“Do you really think I can hurt the only person I have ever loved?” With a searing look on his face, Kai whipped around to face him. As an Immortal If Suho ever felt the pain of death, it was at this moment. It was the look that Kai was giving him.

 

‘No wonder humans are so afraid of death. This pain is indeed indescribable’ Suho mused as Kai’s eyes screamed at him to vaporise that very second, the irises seemed to be flaring up with dark, engulfing flames that swallowed everything within its range,  the power his seething gaze held in that brief moment

 

“So you are basically confessing that you got rid of Kyungsoo so that you could have me? Is that what it was?” Suho’s brow furrowed, Kai shouldn’t have any knowledge about his lil’ contact with Kyungsoo. This certainly foiled his well crafted plans.

 

“No-” Suho began but faltered at the raise of eyebrows Kai gave him. But tonight he wasn’t going hesitate anymore.”-It wasn’t that at all, not even in the slightest actually.”

 

Kai snorted, “Is that the lie you have been telling yourself?” He turned around to face him properly.  “I wouldn’t be surprised at all.”

 

Suho had a small rueful smile on his face now, as he broke his eye contact with Kai. “No I was trying to stop you from making the same mistake as Krystal’s sister Jessica.” The Moon God’s eyes widened a little but it was gone so fast that if Suho wasn’t aware he wouldn’t have noticed it.

 

“Don’t talk as if you know something!” He brandished his Hunting staff threateningly in Suho’s direction. “That matter was closed, the moment I chose to banish her in front of the Divine Assembly. This has nothing to do with her!” He was borderline shouting but Suho was not bothered in the least.

 

The God of Sea moved in Kai’s direction, not fearing his staff at all. “You might have convinced that assembly, that you chose to banish Jessica for such a pathetic reason like attacking you, but you did not even once manage to fool these eyes of mine!.” Kai’s eyebrows furrowed in a quiet display of anger.

 

“Oh, and what did your eyes actually manage to see?” he taunted Suho because he had enough of someone claiming to know his life better than him.

 

Suho caught hold of the hunting staff, holding it away from their bodies, effectively blocking it’s direct movement but at the same time giving Kai the option of retreating or defending himself. And with that he stared straight into his dark eyes.

 

“I saw the pain in your eyes when everyone else only felt the pain inflicted by your words, including Krystal.”

 

Kai was a bit shaken by how close Suho had gotten and how he couldn’t bring himself to attack him again despite the close range. “Pain? Well, of course Jessica attacked me out of nowhere with all the intentions of exiling me. I was only protecting myself.”

 

“You banished her for such a lame reason, it was for Krystal wasn’t it?” Suho only iterated quietly but Kai’s face exploded with a spectrum of emotions.

 

Kai grabbed Suho’s robes in a fit of apoplexy, “What part of that decision, seems like it was meant for Krystal huh? The waves of anger were rolling off him but Suho ordained himself to be calm.

 

“Cover it up all you can, but didn’t you banish Jessica so that she wouldn't be punished by the assembly by being sent to the mortal world?.” Kai’s grip tightened dangerously. “Wasn’t she going to expose her sin of falling for a mortal so that she would be sent to the mortal world of humans and in doing so, she would die just like her lover did?”

  
  


Kai snarled at him to shut him up, “I did no such thing!.”

  
  


But Suho continued like he hadn’t heard, “And by banishing her for attacking you with her poisoned arrows, she was only sent to the Underworld instead of the mortal world like she had originally planned so that once her sentence was over she would be reunited with her sister.”

 

Suho looked at Kai, his gaze soft and worried, as he watched him tremble all over even as he tried to hold on to Suho in a choking grip, gritting his teeth in an effort to stop the tears that Suho was sure were welling up inside him.

 

These little details, he always noticed. Ever since he saw the contrast between his actions and the look in his eyes during that Assembly, he couldn’t get him out of his head.

 

“By doing this, didn’t you try to protect what was precious to Krystal? Didn’t you try to protect what remained of her family, so that she didn’t have to feel the pain of being deserted and betrayed?”

 

After hearing this, it seemed like all the energy was zapped out of him as he loosened his grip and let Suho fall unceremoniously to the ground. He sighed miserably as if this was something that has always bothered him at the back of his mind. “Like I said before, I did no such thing. Don’t glorify my actions as something heroic because at the end of the day, it was me who decided to intervene and rip away her loved ones.”

 

“All I see is stupidity and selfishness.” A pause. “She really treasured her sister, at least more than Jessica ever did.” He rubbed his temples wearily. “Sure, Jessica must be cursing me eternally for taking away her only chance to die peacefully just like her lover did.”

 

“Krystal did curse me to stay away from her and her life. And not only did I take away her sister, but also her best friend and her lover all at once. Had I not tried to stop Jessica that time, things would have been different.”

 

“But you did.” Suho finally got up deciding to seize this moment right here. “You did it because you understood the pain of being alone, because you didn’t want her to experience the same emptiness that you did, the same sorrow you felt.”

 

“I-I-” He blinked away the pearlesque tears that were brimming rapidly at the corner of his eyes and tried his best to compose himself in order to hide away his vulnerabilities and insecurities.

 

“But Krystal never understood your pain, she might have been closest to you once upon a time, but she didn’t understand your inner hollowness that stemmed from being alone initially, having no friends and a family that abandoned you at some point.”

  
  


“The hollowness that arose from mechanically completing your tasks and responsibilities as the sole protector of the moon, unable to feel, unable to heal from all these wounds that people inflicted upon you before leaving you to deal with it” His voice rose at the end, reflecting the pain that shot up through him as reiterated these feelings to Kai, trying to get his point across.

 

Kai was making it a point to not look at his face anymore.

 

“She didn’t even want to see you after the decision was made, let alone hear your reasons. She refused to understand you, and if she truly ever loved you back like you once loved her, then she wouldn’t have lost a precious friend.”

 

In a very shaky voice, Kai managed to question him, “What is your point Suho? If you are done I would like to mourn in peace.”

 

“My point is, I understand your pain and your loneliness that all these years of isolation has brought to you. Because when I first saw you, it was during that Assembly, and that look of intense pain as you exiled Jessica to the underworld right in front of her sister, it resonated in the depths my heart and I felt it too.” Kai shut his eyes at that.

 

“You shouldn’t have. Nobody should have.” Kai muttered despondently.

  
  


“Even if I didn’t get your actions back then, I recognized the glimpse of hollowness that flashed in your eyes for a brief second.”

 

“Suho, I appreciate your concern, but can I go? I cannot deal with this-”

 

Suho  gently grabbed his face, preventing him from leaving, “Will you not give me a chance? I fell for you ever since and there hasn’t been a day where I haven’t longed for you. I keep falling harder and faster by each passing month, watching you descend on night like these on earth, from afar.”

 

He took a shaky breath before responding, “I-I-would if I didn’t have feelings for Kyung-soo.”

 

“Even if he will die one day?” something inside of Suho shattered.

 

“I- yes, I love him with all my heart and soul even if he will crush my heart one day and leave me alone again. Painful? It will be. More so than you can imagine.” His eyes held a spark of firm determination despite the cracks and fissures in his deep voice. For Suho that was representation of pain and suffering that he couldn’t turn away from even if he tried to.

 

“But the time I have spent with him, will always remain as a fond memory of pure love, untainted and untouched by any evil energy or a negative memory. Because what I feel for him is real, a connection that tethered our souls together, despite our differences. And from what I know, he felt it too.”

  
  


Suho was close to giving up because he felt the affection dripping from his words as he described his feelings for Kyungsoo. He never really stood a chance against that. “Aren’t you walking the same path of destruction as Jessica? Falling for a mortal?”

 

“I wish I knew how to stop walking this path, honestly. Even when I know the dangers of continuing down this road, I cannot stop. And I will not be able to stop until I am fuelled by my feelings for Kyungsoo.” Kai smiled up at him but the smile did not reach his eyes.

  
  


Suho sighed as if he were dealing with a stubborn child. “I know I sprung this up out of nowhere but I want you to answer my question again, come the next full moon. And I promise to give up, if your answer remains unchanged.”

  
  


Kai frowned but before he could voice out his protest, Suho had vanished along with the giant sea wave that towered over the cliff.

  
  


_'Strange_.' He noted to himself.

 

  
  


* * *

  
  
  


_**The Reed Moon** _

_**Don’t be afraid of the song** _

_**Of the souls as they journey** _

_**From the human realm** _

_**To the underworld.** _

_**Just smile and sing along** _

_**To soften their path, so thorny** _

_**And not to overwhelm** _

_**Beasts of netherworld** _

  
  
  
  
  


Kai finally found the courage to face Kyungsoo, weeks later after his death but he didn’t want to do this at all. The memories were still fresh in his head, causing more pain due to summation effect of newer, larger waves tried to wash him down and drown him away. Every wave larger than its predecessor and and equally suffocating.

 

The emotions were still raw and he undefined. He failed to articulate in proper words and sentences what he felt when he learned about Kyungsoo’s death from Baekhyun and Chen. He remembers feeling incredibly disjointed. It felt as if his head was in another dimension altogether and only his body remained in this world. He still doesn’t know what was he thinking, where were his thoughts flowing and what was he even doing.

 

His body on the other hand continued to carry out its responsibilities like a clockwork, like he was accustomed to for decades and centuries now. He really couldn’t understand how did he even function at all because his brain had completely shut down and since then up to this moment his memory has been fuzzy.

 

There was this thing with Suho, that has been occupying his thoughts lately. He kept replaying the entire conversation in his head again and again and all he was left with were a growing pile of questions and not a single answer. He wondered since when did that man begin to harbour any feelings for him and what was his actual motivation behind pushing Kyungsoo to make a final choice.

 

Something was still not adding up and the more he thought about Suho, the more complex he became.

 

He desolately stared at the grave, unmoving like an immaculate statue. At this point he felt as if even tears would fall short of expressing his grief over losing his only  soulmate.

  
  


Yes, Kyungsoo was that soulmate he had been waiting for, the one who loved and accepted him as he was and the one whose love for him was genuine and pure. His affection really filled the holes of loneliness in his life. He felt as if Kyungsoo would understand his need for constant love and affection and he would always be willing to understand his fears and doubts. The only being who wouldn’t judge him based on his past actions and the only one who would be willing to look past his superficial self and dig deeper into his soul.

  
  


Even as Kyungsoo’s body laid cold and dead, buried underneath the ground, Kai didn’t want to leave him. He wanted to stay by his side, against the unyielding stone which had Kyungsoo’s name carved into it.

  
  


He sensed an identical presence behind him and he didn’t have to check to confirm the identity of the person. There could only be one person at this moment.

 

Suho.

 

“For a person who is desperate for answers, you are sure late.” Kai couldn’t keep the bitter edge off his tone. He did try but not too hard though.

  
  


“Pardon my lateness, but I was preparing something for you and I had to make sure it was in perfect condition before I gave it to you.” For a strange reason, he did seem weary all of a sudden.

 

Kai whipped around to face him fully, a frown indenting his face, “Suho- I- You know my answer-” Suho cut him off mid sentence by holding up his palm in air.

 

“Save it.” he took a deep breath before continuing. “We will continue this conversation after my gift and even if your answer is still no, take it as a parting gift, if you will.” He smiled ruefully before gesturing Kai to follow him.

 

“Come with me.”

  
  
  
  


The traversed deep into the sea until they made it to the sea bed where Suho usually resided.

  
  


Kai noted the absence of any natural light down by the rocks. He was sure that this deep into the sea, not even sunlight made it down here let alone the moonlight. That notion itself seemed ironic to him when he glanced at Suho who was leading them to some random place, only he knew.

 

Their natural radiance sure helped a lot in navigating these rocks and uneven ground.

 

They finally made it to an empty looking chamber and even after gawking for several seconds Kai wasn’t sure what was he even looking at.

 

Hesitantly, Kai followed Suho and got closer to the chamber, unable to see the appeal behind this.  

 

“Did you like your gift?”

 

“Frankly speaking, where is this gift that you talk of? I don’t see anything anything except this gigantic cubical chamber that seems to be devoid of water, the only place which lacks water ironically-” Something caught his eye.

  
  


“Is that so?” Suho mused rhetorically. “Look closely then.”

  
  


Kai’s eyes widened with disbelief as he back away a few steps. “It can’t be-” He clasped a hand onto his mouth, staring at the chamber in shock and awe.

  
  


“Seems like you have noticed.”

  
  


“Is- Is that Kyungsoo?!” His eyes were honestly about to bulge out of their sockets.

  
  


“If you have to ask me that, then you aren’t seeing it closely enough.”

  
  


Suho gestured to a floating entity which vaguely resembled a human, suspended in the centre of the water chamber. “That is Kyungsoo’s spirit.” When Kai failed to articulate a proper response, he continued.

 

“As a werewolf, Kyungsoo had two spirits in his body. So I asked him to offer me one of his spirits to me as a sacrifice for becoming an immortal, which is what you know as his death”

 

Kai barely managed to stutter out. “W-Why?”

 

“When I asked him to make a choice between Life, Death, and Immortality he chose Immortality. And before you question me, no that wasn’t a result of my manipulation. This was something I had to confirm for myself.”

  
  


Suho smiled resignedly. “He came up to me on his own and resolutely declared his answer. There was not a speck of doubt lingering in his eyes and for a moment, his clear eyes reminded me of yours, so in return I made a choice as well.”

  
  


It was only then Kai’s beautiful eyes turned to him again. Suho tried to savour it all for this was the last time they will ever see each other for a long time. “I made the absurd choice of helping him.”

 

“If he was what made you happy, then-” Suho just shrugged, choosing not to complete the sentence.

  
  


Suho diverted the topic, “This is a special chamber I built for preserving his spirit till the time was right and I had to ensure that both of you really wanted this.”

  
  


“In Human world, this month is known as the Reed Moon, which is the only time when Resurrection works on their spirits, as they undertake the journey to the underworld and upon a little intervention, we are able to revive them successfully. Now it’s upto you whether you want to grant him that Immortality or not. He made his choice, now you make yours.” Suho turned to him reluctantly as he finished his explanation.

  
  


“I am too stunned to say anything Suho.” He still couldn’t take his eyes off the chamber.

  
  


“Just tell me your answer again.” Maybe Kai sensed the pain in his voice because his eyes were gentle again.  
  


“Kyungsoo is the one I fell for and I don’t think I will love another ever again.” Suho closed his eyes in defeat. “I see.”

 

“So this means goodbye then..”

 

“I will never forget what you did for me, so when I am in trouble again, will you come for me?”

 

Suho tried his hardest to not turn and look in his direction again because this man was really making this harder, “You are being cruel, Kai.”

 

“I don’t think I would find any other who understands me without any judgements like you do….. So Please?” Kai had cupped his hand in a silent request and honestly how was he supposed to refuse this?

 

“It’s enough that you will remember me.” Suho peaked at Kai hesitantly because if he saw his face he wouldn’t be able to let go, “So please don’t ever get into trouble again.” With that Suho withdrew his hand and retreated to the sea of darkness, never once looking back.

  
  


With melancholic eyes, Kai looked back at the transparent chamber again.

  
  
  
  
  


“ _Suijin_ , you disappoint me.” A deep voice jeered at the lifeless form of Suho, trying to retreat away into the darkness,

 

‘That voice…..’ Suho’s brain powered up at once as soon as he heard the name he hadn’t heard for a while now. The tall shadow loomed over him with a mildly entertained face. Of course the lord of the underworld was entertained. ‘ _Where does he come up with all these new names?_ ’ Suho wondered irately

 

He stepped away from Suho and admired his nails, “Don’t get me wrong, _Suijin_. I like my happily-ever-afters you know.” He smiled disarmingly. “ And when your haggard self  frantically came looking for the wolf sprite, I just knew it was about love, romance and all that jazz.” Suho narrowed his eyes at the man.

 

“Oh dear….” He began with a hand cupping his cheek dramatically. “You musn’t look at me like that. You know how much I love hearing and seeing all these love stories that unfold all around me.”

  
  


Suho sighed under his breath, “Of course you do.”

  
  


“It makes me all warm and giddy inside.” He smiled pointedly at Suho again. “It’s a nice feeling I must admit.”

  
  


“Yeah. Must be.” Suho wanted to end this conversation as soon as possible.

  
  


But the Underworld God wasn’t done apparently. “But you wound me Suijin.” He dramatically gestured to the place he had left so painstakingly. “All this effort for somebody else’s happily-ever-after? What about you? You not only don’t end up with the one you loved all along but you also hand him over to someone else? So it was all for naught?”

  
  


Suho had enough of this conversation which was getting nowhere so he retorted, “Loving someone from all your heart and soul doesn’t necessarily involve spending your entire existence next to them.” _Aericurus_ raised his eyebrow challengingly. He seemed even more invested than before and honestly Suho wanted to get this over with so he began again in a tired voice.

  
  


“Because people like you tend to gloss over the dark side of love, so let me make this clear.” Suho continued. “Love, also involves letting go of the ones you love the most, as searingly painful it might be.”

 

Aericurus, smirked at his response, his eyes gleaming with interest on this subject. Suho hurriedly continued, “All that matters is making your loved one happy so no, all this effort wasn’t for naught, _Sehun_.” He intentionally emphasized that name. “Or do you prefer _Aericurus_?”

 

The Lord of the Underworld gave a hearty laugh at that. “You have an interesting viewpoint on this matter, _Suijin_ and I would love to continue this chat but I have things to attend to.” He was about to leave when he turned suddenly, giving Suho a small shock.

 

 _“We have a deal Suho. Don’t forget.”_ With that he was finally gone.

  
  


‘ _So that is why he was he was here_.’ Suho thought to himself.

  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
  


_**The Elder Moon** _

_**What once begun** _

_**Must also come to an end.** _

_**When a story is done** _

_**A new one shall be penned.** _

_**In hearts and minds** _

_**Of us and all our friends.** _

  
  
  
  
  


Kai hesitantly approached the cliff, completely clueless about what to expect and not having visited the place in a whie was making him slightly nervous.

 

He made it to their designated place all the while holding his breath, unaware and unsure of what to expect. He took a cursory glance at the cliffside and immediately turned away.

 

He certainly did not expect to see a radiant figure standing there in their beaming white glory. He resolutely made up his mind and began to walk again, albeit slower than before.

 

His apprehension coated steps approached the figure as silently as he could but in this moment he honestly felt like everything around them had become still, in build up of this moment and in this dead silence he felt as if the mysterious figure could even hear his drumming heartbeat.

 

The mysterious man turned to him all of a sudden and his ears were not at all ready for the melodious sound that followed next and in all honesty he almost tripped when he heard it. Again.

  
  


“Would you mind keeping me company?”

  
  


And everything fell into place.

  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  


_**Don’t chase the moon wolf,** _

_**Worship her beauty,** _

_**Admire her Serenity,** _

_**Praise her Tranquility,** _

_**Don’t run behind her** _

_**Neither towards her.** _

_**She will not catch you** _

_**When you trip and fall.** _

_**She will just watch** _

_**As you fall deeper.** _

 

_**So Don’t chase the moon wolf,** _

_**You will only seem pitiful.** _

  
  
  


There are still lingering urban legends about the Wolf that fell for the Moon.

 

* * *

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Suijin: means water god and Sehun loves messing around with Suho's name each time they meet
> 
>         Aericurus: The God of the Underworld and yes you read it right. Sehun in Aericurus and he loves annoying Suho.
> 
>  
> 
> And it's a wrap. Thank you to all that supported me and helped me write this fic esp Pista. Honestly I was triggered when nico said that my next update will be by christmas so I made sure that was not the case. Also please tell me your thoughts in your comments below bc I appreciate all of them. I hope you don't want to kill me after reading this chap. And I know nobody cares but I passed my 1st year of college so I was motivated to write this even more after getting my results.
> 
> Next upcoming fic is also kaisoo and will include cat!ksoo ^^

**Author's Note:**

> I am reposting this from aff thanks to nico's suggestion. Please tell me what do you think in your comments.
> 
> Read. Comment. Enjoy.  
> -ink_stained_hands


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